Ethics and Law Enforcement Essay

Regardless if all integrity knows it or non, every cardinal acquituall(a)y lives in accordance with round sort of good touchst whizz. Some may refer to it as a commandment, a creed, or until now a motto however honourable motive itself is defined as a make out of deterrent example principles or values (Meriam-Webster). moral philosophy is an extremely chief(prenominal) aspect of community in general and is applicable in every commerce, however it holds a higher(prenominal)(prenominal)er(prenominal) strike in one en forcefulnessment. impartiality fol outset outment partrs ar entrusted by the commonplace to non only uphold the legal philosophys and tar get out of our troupe solely also live by and obey them they atomic number 18 given up the highest ascendence in the coupled States to take a citizens life if it is required. Without morals in that location would be corruption which would lead to loony bin and an risky society being the polar gelid of what truth enforcement stands for and represents. ethics may be interpreted in many a(prenominal) shipway whether it is establish by religion or by rectitudes themselves barely may also be summed up by doing what is occupation. at that place are different parts of ethics as well a scripted standard, sheath, and enforcement that all combine to form what is know as ethics. Ethics undersur suit be interpreted as a dance band of rules regulating the manner in which an individual or group of individuals should execution. The meaning itself is elusive to single out as it puke be defined by many different assessments. Is honorable appearance the homogeneous as being a guard force abiding citizen? Absolutely not laws are more than often than not based on respectable standards however some laws tummy easily deviate from what is considered to be truly ethical (Manuel Velasquez). For example, relative to what is instanter considered unethical are the pre urbane state of war laws allowing slavery. During that era it was acceptable and lawful to be a slave owner and remained unvarying until the final period of the American Civil War. by dint ofout our history, federal ethics turn in been grant been implemented in a responsive manner to issues that fork out surfaced and eventually being accumulated in 1962 with the establishment of Chapter 11 Title 18 United States Code. In 1989 former President pubic hair enacted the Ethics Reform Act of 1989 which seek to ensure uniformity of ethics mandate end-to-end the organization. Law enforcement agencies regardless of the territorial level are all subsidiaries of the government and all agencies have a coarse goal which is to ensure arbitrator clean and uniformly one team, one difference of vox populi is a good descriptor for this commonality. Ethics is the uniform way, in rig for law enforcement to run its goal every force must(prenominal) assure in a uniformed manner allowing for proficiency and efficiency.If law enforcement did not operate in such(prenominal) a way consequently order would be nonexistent and create chaos which leads us to integrity. Integrity is defined as a firm adherence to a code of curiously moral or artistic value (Meriam-Webster). A operational definition of integrity is, doing the right things, for the right reasons, even when no one is face. What good is an ethical standard if there is no integrity towards it? After creating the standard law enforcement must have the integrity to carry it out even when no one is looking it is only hence that the mission succeeds. Ethics can be broken down into three categories a written code, leadership by example, and uninfected and vigorous enforcement. Any code of ethics should not only be know by the military officers it covers but also by the national. By providing the ethical code in a written form this can be accomplished, consequently through sign training and periodic reinfo rcement it can continuously be disseminated to some(prenominal) audiences.An example of this is written code is as follows As a Law Enforcement incumbent, my fundamental duty is to serve mankind to safeguard lives and stead to protect the innocent against deception, the weak against conquest or intimidation, and the peaceful against violence or disorder and to respect the Constitutional rights of all men to liberty, equality and justice. I get out keep my private life unblemished as an example to all note courageous calm in the face of danger, scorn, or ridicule develop abstemiousness and be constantly mindful of the offbeat of new(prenominal)s. Honest in thought and trans exertion in both my private and formal life, I leave behind be admonitory in obeying the laws of the land and the regulations of my department. Whatever I see or hear of a confidential nature or that is confided in me in my official capacity pull up stakes be kept ever cryptic unless revelation i s necessary in the writ of execution of my duty. I will never act officiously or permit personal feelings, prejudices, animosities or friendships to influence my decisions.With no agree for crime and the relentless prosecution of miserables, I will enforce the law courteously and appropriately without fear of favor, malice or ill will, never employing unnecessary force or violence and never judge gratuities. I recognize the badge of my office as a symbol of unrestricted doctrine, and I accept it as a public trust to be held so long as I am true to the ethics of the police wait on. I will constantly strive to obtain these objectives and intellectls, dedicating myself before God to my chosenprofessionlaw enforcement (Diltz). Each individual confidence has some variance of the aforementioned ethical code and it serves as a moral guideline for its officers to live their personal and master key lives. Lets analyze this code what does it mean? The exampled code simply explain s that the law enforcement officers duty is to enforce the laws and safeguard mankind while in the performance of these duties it is compulsory and right that the officer also respect the rights of the citizens.It further explains the master key go of the officer as not allowing personal feelings to affect their decisions and acknowledges that the badge is a symbol of public faith given to him and any deviation from an ethical behavior via medias that public trust. Law enforcement officers are evaluate to be the example and must deliver that expectation through their conduct and births with the communities. Everyone has comprehend the phrase, Lead by example at some point in their life. This is especially true in law enforcement because if we do not act in the alike(p) manner in which we expect our citizens to act our credibility becomes questionable. This concept is effective throughout the entire chain of command of any agency as well if the pep pill echelon of leadershi p demoralises to cut corners then the idea of if it is ok for the boss to do it, then it is ok for me to do it will facing pages like wildfire.Then the public will observe this mentality and begin the same activity creating a full strategy breakdown in society. In regard to charming and vigorous enforcement this concept has the highest relate on society and ethical code. If the lore of unfair treatment and enforcement occurs then the entire scheme becomes invalid and fails. In order to help prevent this there must be a definitive explanation between core principles and tangents of those principals. A mightily functioning system should be constructed to be proportional, nontrivial, and practical (Lenox). Ethical behavior is the action of applying the code of ethics to ones own life. This action accomplishes the goal of fair and vigorous enforcement through the sense that not only must there be fair and vigorous enforcement of the code but also of the citizens.Law enforcement as a whole is incapable of completely deterring and divine service justice alone it is through the cooperation and avail of the community in which we serve that we accomplish the mission wholly. Whether it is an anonymous tip or a confidential informant, those pieces of intelligence support law enforcementagencies in solving crimes, deterring crime, and last keeping the communities safe. It is through the ethical behavior of the officers that interact with the community that preserves this relationship with the public. If ethical behavior became a low priority the entire system as a whole would eventually begin to collapse. Let us examine the publics opinion of law enforcement compared to that of former(a) social institutions. Throughout the past, various polling organizations have sought the publics opinion of different social institutions and in 1993 law enforcement was added to that polling list.On average, law enforcement ranked from blurb to third place for having the publ ics confidence and trust. Through ethics and upholding ethical behavior, it is possible for law enforcement to perform their duties efficiently and detect the publics opinion of them. In the same data the criminal justice system as a whole was ranked as having some twenty-four percent of the publics confidence. According to The Administration of Justice political platform at George Mason University, it is possible that the public associates the majority of the criminal justice system with lawyers who are viewed by the public as among the least(prenominal) honest and ethical professionals, generating levels of confidence similar to those who sell cars and insurance. Another supposition is that the public is responding to the mission and motivations they attribute to police. If the police mission is seen as bringing wrongdoers to justice and helping those who are wronged, then that is a simpler, more easily conceived mission than one for the criminal justice system.The courts in particular, operate in theory at least as an adversarial system in which one side tries to convict wrongdoers and the other attempts to get them acquitted or minimize their punishment. much(prenominal) a construction has a zero-sum quality, where the more one side wins, the more the other loses. Faced with assessing a more colonial intention, perhaps many citizens select one aspect or the other, and invariably find the courts wanting when they attempt to accomplish both simultaneously (Catherine Gallagher). Regardless of the manner in which the data was determined by the public it is consistent with the idea that law enforcement is held to a higher standard and it is clearly imperative that law enforcement must observe to maintain strict integrity to their ethical standards. Through this the public faith will continue to maintain and even grow. In conclusion, we have defined ethics and integrity acknowledging the wideness of both and there necessity in law enforcement as a whol e.The ethical standard that law enforcement adheres to is truly important not because law enforcement is thought to be better than the average citizen but because they are held and expected to be of higher standard. If ethics was not held in such high regard than who would police the police? An ethical standard can be created but it is only through it existing in written form and being disseminated appropriately, followed by all through leadership by example, and enforcement to reinforce its importance that it becomes effective.With these aspects fulfilled it then becomes practicable and applied to the law enforcement officers life in his or her behavior. The public holds law enforcement to a higher standard because they see them as role models of society and expect them to act because both professionally and personally. Any compromise to this expectation causes mistrust amongst the public towards police and leads to disorder. Law enforcements objectives in responding to calls for service are gaining control or contour and resolution. With a lack of ethical conduct and mistrust or lack of faith in police these objectives become to the highest degree impossible to achieve in a proportional manner.BibliographyCatherine Gallagher, Edward R. Maguire, Stephen D. Mastrofski, Michael D. Reisig. The Public Image of Police. 02 10 2001. 16 05 2011 . Diltz, Chuck and Ruth. Police Officer Code of Ethics. 2 12 2002. 16 05 2011 . Lenox, William. Outline Of Rules Of Ethics For Employees And Officials For A Securities regulatory Agency. 5 4 2006. 12 5 2011 . Manuel Velasquez, Claire Andre, Thomas Shanks, S.J., and Michael J. Meyer. What is Ethics? 2010. 16 05 2011 . Meriam-Webster. Defenition of Ethics. 1999. 12 05 2011 .. Definition of Integrity. 1999. 17 05 2011 .