From there the change of urbanization rendered the night-watch system completely useless as communities got too big. An organized police force with officers on duty full-time was created in Boston in 1838. (Cite) The police have been around for almost as long as America, however so has the abuse of power committed by those in power.
The first policing era which I’d like to discuss is that of the Political Era which lasted from 1840-1930. When first learning about this particular warp in time, it would be easy to think that everything was just as it should be. The police officers spent their time getting to know the citizens that lived in their patrol areas and they would get to know each shop owner and businessman alike. The officers would mostly run their routes on horseback or their bikes which created an intimate feeling of safety. But there was a downside to this perfect-looking, Mr. Rogers lifestyle.
Originally, during Colonial times, policing in the United States consisted of little more than night watches. These watches weren’t very effective, as watchmen often drank or slept on duty, and many of the volunteers were only there as a way to get out of military service or helping with the watch as a form of punishment (Potter, 2013). It wasn’t until 1838 that the city of Boston established the first formal organized police force in America. Other cities soon followed, and by the 1880s, all major metropolitan areas had a formal police force. These changes took place largely due to the rapid population growth in American cities.
1845 was the year New York City saw the creation of the first large professionalized police force in the country. Before 1845, the city had been patrolled by a night watch force that would patrol the city. With no professional training or equipment, these watchmen were equipped with noise makers to alert members of the public to observe and report crime. Two high profile murder cases caused public outcry, and placed enough pressure on the city government to pass the municipal police act in 1845, establishing the police force. 1850 was the year Los Angeles saw the creation of its own police force, the Los Angeles Rangers.
In the 1960's there were about six new major developments that created a new generation of policing. During this era, the police force was going in a new direction. Reports were being made that something had to change within America's police forces. Officers had to establish more professionalism when it came to not only their work but their education. The educational portion of this job was then changed to criminal justice which helped officers to widen their curriculum.
The development of policing in the United States followed the policing model in England and developed over decades. It was not until the 1880s that the United States established municipal police forces that were present in all major U.S. cities. These municipal police forces were similar in that they had public support, officers were employed and not volunteers, the departments had established protocols and rules, and the departments were accountable to the government (Lundman 1980). Policing is said to have gone through various stages the last few decades. Hooper (2014) points out that policing in the United States has evolved through three eras: The Political Era that had close ties to politics, the Reform Era that was developed because of the deficiencies of the Political Era and then the Community Era, that focused on Community Policing.
During the Gilded Age, the police was an entity highly corrupt. Also, police officer positions were political appointments. In general, a police officer did not earn too much money for salary, they got it from the extortion, conning and some numerous other illegal practices. Persistently, the police enforcement were extremely ruthless, and they also took the law in their own hands. For instance, they beating and punished people before arrested them.
With the signing of the Metropolitan Police act in 1829, the way crime prevention was organized changed; along with the way newspapers reported on crime. Before the act of 1829, crime prevention in London fell under the control of local magistrate courts and the militia, but the act of 1829 established a single organized civilian police force in London. According to the police commissioner and the state office, the focuses of this new police force was crime prevention, not crime detection. However, lower classes viewed the act as threat to civil liberty.
Sir Robert Peel was an English Prime minister and reformer. Peele is referred to as the founder of modern policing. In the book Economic development, crime and policing: Global perspectives by Lemieux, F., Heyer, G. den, & Das, D. K. (2014). p. 46, Peel is noted as recognizing the need for paramilitary policing that answers to a central authority. According to the National Police Association website, the term paramilitary is defined as an organization similar to military force.
New York was founded in 1624, and the New York city’s Police Department is traced all the way back to 1625. In the beginning, their main focus was to focuses on gambling, excessive drinking, and prostitution. As the revolutionary war began to take place, policemen’s focus started to shift and they were assigned to protect the citizens of New York City. During wars, though the primary form of law enforcement came to the military, their main priority is to protect citizens against enemy soldiers. After Independence New York adopted the London model for policing, establishing a professional department in 1828.
Political Era of policing was estimated at around the years 1800- 1900s.
Robert Peel was the British Home Secretary who played a major role in getting the English Parliament to pass into law an act creating a central police force in London in 1829 (Bohm & Haley, 2017). In creating the police force, Peel also proposed ‘12 Principles of Policing’ (Bohm & Haley, 2017) that are still important to police agencies in current times. Listed below are each of the principles, a brief description, and why they are still applicable. The police must be stable, efficient, and organized along military lines- this implies that a police force should be organized with a command structure similar to that of the military.
The main reason we need police according the Peels first principle is to prevent crime and disorder. This is an important principle for all law enforcement. If the police did not prevent crime and disorder, then there would not be a reason for a police force at all. In todays modern
Many believe that the Police officer have existed since the beginning of civilization. Although the establishment of the U.S. Police force is actually a modern invention. The first organized police force funded by the public, was created in Boston in 1838, which employed officers full-time. The definition of public order during the 19th century, to today has been maintained by the police force.
From a time immorial the police have been a very intrigal part of the our social life. Be it the gupta period or the shivajian era, or the dark times of the east india company. Police has been omni present in the social order. One can not overlook the importance of police in the peaceful wellbeing of the state. But with the change in the attitude of the state towords its citizens the roll of police has also changed.
