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Ethical Issues In Law Enforcement Essay

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Recommended: Police discretion and the use of force

Law Enforcement today faces many challenges with a key one being trust. A portion of society has grown to distrust law enforcement due to their actions. This starts out with the actions of a few bad apples and then moves to the handling of incidents by police administrations. “Consequentialist theories include both philosophical egoism and utilitarianism. In both cases, the emphasis is put on the consequences of given actions”, (Dion, 2012). The theory focuses on the formal leaders as well as the informal leaders within the agency.
Society looks for and deserves openness and transparency in law enforcement agencies today. Ethics in law enforcement today are in question. Those ethical issues facing law enforcement today consist of racial discrimination, financial corruption, gender discrimination, use of force and appropriate use of technology. “Making decisions ethically involves the process as well as the result. Almost every decision is made in the context of uncertainty about the facts and the consequences”, …show more content…

As discussed earlier, the hiring process is the first step in getting appropriate staff. Agencies must implement an assessment process that takes into consideration the temperament of the officer. This can lead to hiring officers of high moral character and integrity and not just those that are smart and strong. These assessments can go a long way in insuring agencies hiring the best. The training component discussed earlier is important in this area. Officer have a wide range of tools at their disposal that can aid in making good choices when it comes to reasonable force. Teaching the officers how to use these tools in an appropriate manner is vital to minimizing occurrences of inappropriate use of force claims. As stated in earlier, leadership must implement proper oversight and consistency with disciplining staff for inappropriate use of

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