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POLICE DESCRETION

POLICE DESCRETION. THE POWER OF POLICING. Variables Affecting Police Arrest Decisions. Offender Variables Age Race Socioeconomic Demeanor Situation Variables Offense Criminal history Weapons Visibility System Variables Law & penalties Political pressure Training Peer groups

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POLICE DESCRETION

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  1. POLICE DESCRETION THE POWER OF POLICING

  2. Variables Affecting Police Arrest Decisions • Offender Variables • Age • Race • Socioeconomic • Demeanor • Situation Variables • Offense • Criminal history • Weapons • Visibility • System Variables • Law & penalties • Political pressure • Training • Peer groups • Alternatives to arrest

  3. Factors Affecting the Decision to Invoke the Criminal Justice Process • Offender Variables • Age, Race, and Gender • Socioeconomic Status • Demeanor • Mental Health • Situational Variables • Seriousness of Offense • Weapons Present or Used • Personal or Property crimes • Citizen- or Police-Initiated Action • Witnesses or Presence of Citizens • System Variables • System Capacity to Process Offenders • Severity of Penalty and Offense • Community Opinion & Needs • Department Size, Structure, and Norms • Availability of Alternatives to Arrest

  4. Special Discretionary Situations • Domestic Violence • Vice Crimes • Prostitution • Pornography • Gambling • Hate Crimes • Homelessness • Public Intoxication

  5. Problems with Vice Enforcement • The laws are almost unenforceable. • There is no uniformity in the manner in which vice laws are enforced. • Vice laws encourage illegal activities by police officers. • Enforcement of vice laws is extremely time-consuming and expensive. • Vice laws encourage police corruption. • Vice laws encourage organized crime.

  6. Myths and Facts About the Homeless • MYTH 1: Today there are jobs for every one and homeless people just don't want to work. • FACT: Many people work but are still homeless. • MYTH 2: Homeless people are all crazy or drunk. That's why they're homeless. • FACT: Only 20-25% of the single adult homeless population suffers from severe mental illness; similarly, while there is no generally accepted "magic number" about the percentage of homeless adults with addiction disorders, the frequently cited figure of about 65% is probably at least double the real rate for current addiction disorders among all adults who are homeless in a year. Source: National Coalition for the Homeless (1998). Myths and Facts. Washington, D.C. NCH.

  7. Myths and Facts About Homeless (Cont) • MYTH 3: There are plenty of shelters and services for homeless people. People on the streets don't want help. • FACT: In most cities, there are far more people in need of shelter than available shelter beds. • MYTH 4: America's generous welfare policies and extensive safety net prevent children from becoming homeless. • FACT: Declining welfare benefits and housing assistance have contributed to record numbers of children who experience homelessness in the United States. • MYTH 5: Homelessness is an urban phenomenon. It is very rare in rural areas and the suburbs. • FACT: People become homeless in all areas of the country -- in small towns, suburbs, and rural areas.

  8. Controlling Police Discretion • Internal Controls • Policies & Procedures • Training • Supervision • Internal Investigations • External Controls • Legislative Control • Laws, Funding, Oversight • Judicial Control • Case law, Civil Liability, Convictions • Citizen Review Boards

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