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However, many politicians in this era chose to hire officers for their own gain to control elections & harass opposing parties
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Because police departments must be responsive to democratic control and public policy is expressed in regulations, politics and policing must co-exist and often intersect.
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Politicians used their position to endorse candidates for the police department, buying votes & harassing those opposed, even dismissing entire police staff when a new political party came into power. While there was some resistance to this type of corruption, real change was not seen until the 20th century.
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Prior to this, the earliest colonists depended on volunteer citizens
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This was influenced by shifts in England's economy in the late 17th-early 18th century including the industrial revolution & improved agricultural methods
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From about 1820 to 1833, politicians rewarded loyal voters by giving them jobs among other benefits. The Pendleton Act, passed in 1883, allowed for federal government jobs to be awarded on the basis of merit and employees to be selected through competitive exams. It also established the U.S. Civil Service Commission to enforce its provisions. https://www.archives.gov/milestone-documents/pendleton-act
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During this time, reformers sought to call attention to major corruption, thus arousing the public. In addition, they sought to create a conceptual cornerstone to separate politics and patronage.
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The National Municipal League issued a model city charter, calling for strict separation of politics and administration. This allowed for city managers to appoint competent individuals to leadership position which inherently affected the police departments. https://www.jstor.org/stable/1945673?seq=2
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The national experiment of prohibition created unintended consequences, namely an environment in which organized crime flourished and gangsters able to influence those in position (police, judges, officials). This was also the era of the Great Depression, resulting in residency requirements for city employees.
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President Hoover appointed the National Commission on Law Observance and Law Enforcement, the first comprehensive study of crime and policing in America. Recommendations from this study included enhanced training and education for police. https://law.jrank.org/pages/11309/Wickersham-Commission.html
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This period largely consisted of World War II and the Korean War
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Pearl Harbor was attacked by the Japanese, and the US declared war the next day. Men in public safety agencies volunteered or were drafted, leaving local police departments short-staffed, opening the door for more women to be hired and for their job duties to expand.
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O.W.Wilson's publication reaffirmed the professional model of policing with reinforcement of the military model. It became the "bible" to guide law enforcement as policies & procedures became more comprehensive, there was more accountability of veteran to rookie officers, and executives achieved more efficient operations. https://www.ojp.gov/ncjrs/virtual-library/abstracts/o-w-wilson-and-search-police-profession
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California's POST was created to set minimum standard for the selection and training of police officers. Other states followed suit in the early 1960's to 1970's when federal funds were available. The Massachusetts POST is charged with creating a mandatory certification process for police officers, as well as processes for decertification, suspension of certification, or reprimand in the event of certain misconduct. https://www.mass.gov/orgs/post-commission
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This decade saw the culmination of racial, social, and economic tensions colliding. Many of the riots stemmed from minority unemployment, segregation, and the view of police officers as hostile. In addition, there were many who demonstrated against the Vietnam War.
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The Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex or national origin. Provisions of this civil rights act forbade discrimination on the basis of sex, as well as, race in hiring, promoting, and firing. However this did not apply to certain state and local units of government. https://www.dol.gov/agencies/oasam/civil-rights-center/statutes/civil-rights-act-of-1964
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This report added to the national discussion of the role of police officers which expanded from responding to crime to being conflict managers and liaisons to social welfare agencies. https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/national-advisory-commission-civil-disorders-kerner-report-1967/
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Due to the Watergate scandal, there was an intensified distrust of the government. There were several experiments to study policing and help to better allocate resources. In additions, there was a movement toward creating new organizations including those to advocate for women and minority groups.
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Cincinnati conducted a team policing experience in which officers were formed into teams under the direction of a commander. While this method was unable to be implemented, it helped set the stage for community policing. https://www.ojp.gov/ncjrs/virtual-library/abstracts/cincinnati-team-policing-experiment-summary-report
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The idea of community-oriented policing emerged in the 1980s. Community policing is the collaborative partnerships between the law enforcement agency and the individuals/organizations/communities they serve to develop solutions to problems and increase trust in police. This allows policing to become more proactive, rather than reactive. https://www.ojp.gov/ncjrs/virtual-library/abstracts/community-policing-defined-0
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New and innovative policing strategies emerged during this pace, both as a response to the 9/11 terrorist attacks, but also due to high profile incidents requiring more transparency in law enforcement.
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The SARA method was created for officers to self-analyze and problem and problem-solve and has become an integral part of community policing. https://ncjtc-static.fvtc.edu/Resources/RS00002738.pdf
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Policing was further shaped during this period by events such as mass shootings, continued threats of terrorism, criticism of police use of force, staffing difficulties, and coronavirus-19.
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The Black Lives Matter movement was catalyzed with the death of George Floyd in 2020. This outraged the nation which called for increased accountability to police officers and an overall call for police reform.
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Since the death of George Floyd, many states passed legislation regarding appropriate use of force by a police officer on an unarmed civilian such as the use of tear gas and chokeholds as well as the responsibility to intervene when excessive force is observed. States also cut police department budgets and instituted use of body cameras. https://www.axios.com/police-reform-george-floyd-protest-2150b2dd-a6dc-4a0c-a1fb-62c2e999a03a.html
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George Floyd was filmed having been arrested and pinned to the ground long enough for him to become unconscious and ultimately pass away. This showed extreme use of force and a lack of accountability from the other officers on the scene. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/31/us/george-floyd-investigation.html
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The Task Force was created and charged with reviewing a set of current Boston Police Department’s policies and procedures and presenting to the Mayor and to the public recommendations for action and reform. The four main areas of review were Use of Force policies, Implicit Bias Training, the Body-worn Camera Program, and the Community Ombudsman Oversight Panel. https://www.boston.gov/sites/default/files/file/2020/10/BPD-reform-task-force-english.pdf
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Derek Chauvin was found guilty of the murder of George Floyd, the first white police officer in Minnesota to be held accountable for the unlawful death of a black man. He was sentenced to 22.5 years for second-degree murder. The other three officers at the scene are charged with aiding and abetting. https://www.npr.org/sections/trial-over-killing-of-george-floyd/2021/06/25/1009524284/derek-chauvin-sentencing-george-floyd-murder
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About 30 states have made changes to their legislation in response to the death of George Floyd, however policing is only one part of the criminal justice system. Social & racial inequities continue to affect crime rates, ability to make bail, sentencing and therefore prison time, and ability to reintegrate after incarceration. https://www.brookings.edu/blog/how-we-rise/2021/05/25/one-year-after-george-floyds-murder-what-is-the-status-of-police-reform-in-the-united-states/