The American System of Policing

The American System of Policing

Introduction

The police department is among the significant components of the criminal justice system in the United States of America alongside courts and correctional centers. Stevens (2017) describes this body as an integral part of law enforcement that assists in maintaining order in America.

History of American Policing

American policing operates primarily through government police agencies, which are almost twenty thousand in number. Early policing in America as Stevens, (2017) argues, was applied first in the nineteenth century and was based commonly on the ancient English universal laws, which constituted of volunteers, watch groups and militia systems as the administrators.

Components of the American Policing

Policing in America is conducted at four upper levels; federal, state, local, and municipal levels. At the national level, there exist federal police and law enforcement agencies. Both police and law enforcement agencies are endowed with police roles, each containing a minor component of the other (Weisburd & Braga, 2019). The agencies have Jurisdiction in all states, territories, and U.S possessions. According to the U.S Code, the agencies are only limited to dealing with matters that are only within their power.

At the state level, there exists state police and highway patrols that make up the Department of Public Safety. They provide law enforcement duties such as investigations and state patrol. Such police include capitol police, water police, among others (Sedgwick & Hawdon, 2019). Additionally, county administration consists of sheriff departments and county police. Sheriffs are elected officials responsible for upholding county jails, ensuring safety within courts, and maintain order in the whole county (Sedgwick & Hawdon, 2019). County police, on the other hand, is responsible for patrols and investigations.

According to Rushin (2017), municipal agencies, also called town marshals, provide centralized command and resources to solve major territorial disputes that arise among communities that experience a high population growth rate. They are divided into Metropolitan departments that operate alongside sheriff offices to ensure efficient administration.

Trends in American Policing

Police and minorities

Over the years, since the discovery of a better administration method via police, minorities loathe these departments. Members of ethnic minority groups feel that law enforcers do not treat them fairly (Eterno & Barrow, 2017). An alternative solution to this issue, law enforcement officers are advised to maintain a workforce that accommodates a wide range of diversity in the form of race, language, and cultural background.

Police Management

Management of law enforcers encompasses the wellness and training of officers. With the increased risk of criminal cases in the U.S, officers need ample training to acquire skills to counter with such issues (Liou, 2019). To combat this problem, the United States provides officers with training opportunities in all fields to ensure they are well equipped.

Linking the Trends and Solutions

As demand for police services rises rapidly, solutions to counter the emerging issues need to be identified to ensure a peaceful society. For instance, the problem of misunderstanding between national police and minority communities, according to the United States Code, there should be fairness in the administration of justice to everyone despite the racial, or cultural background.

Conclusion

A stable police system needs to be maintained to counter the peace among different states of America. All levels of administration need to play their roles in the corrective maintenance of peace and order to ensure a correlational environment in America.