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James Walker

LEPSL 510: Communication for Law Enforcement Leaders


University of San Diego: Professional & Continuing Education

Transparency in Law Enforcement

In most jobs around the world organizations are tasked with using a reasonable level of

transparency when dealing with the public. Governmental organizations are generally expected

to use more transparency because of their ties the public and the powers granted to them. Law

enforcement organizations must find a unique balance in regards to how transparent they are

with the public. While investigating crimes transparency can be of great assistance, but also of

great danger. The same can be said of the many interactions that law enforcement has with the

public. Sometimes those interactions have the potential to end in violence. It is up to law

enforcement to find a balance between tainting a possible investigation, and keeping the public

informed about what they are doing to ensure no misconduct, in or out of the department is

occurring.

While conducting an investigation law enforcement officials can handle communication

with the public in many different manners. Sometimes giving information about potential

dangers can help the public to avoid a dangerous situation. On the other hand giving too much

information can tip of a criminal that the police are looking for them. Law enforcement officers

must use their best judgment in each situation to determine where transparency is best used. If

done appropriately a good transparent investigation can allow the public to help police find new

leads and connect individuals or new evidence to a crime. That can be done by releasing

appropriate information through a press release or even at a town hall meeting.

Communication Accommodation: Law Enforcement and the Public references many

different reasons why it would be valuable for law enforcement to have the trust of the public. In
places where law enforcement have the support of the citizenry that they represent they are more

likely to report crimes and come forward as witnesses in crimes they see committed. The public

is more likely to support law enforcement causes on the ballot such as tax increases. According

to the National Research Council, "An effective police force in a democracy requires the consent

and cooperation of its citizenry." This cannot be emphasized enough with the modern society that

we now live in. Every encounter with the public can very easily be circulated around the internet

with ease. Sometimes the actions taken by law enforcement are correct and other times not so

much. The important part is that the agencies and officers involved responded appropriately and

transparently to the public in order to maintain a good working and trusting relationship.

In late 2014 the California Highway Patrol (CHP) learned the hard way that without

effective communication with the public dangerous tension can be built up. The stage was set

when Officer Daniel Andrew responded to a radio call of a female walking on the side of the

freeway. The female was 51 year old Marlene Pinnock, a mentally ill woman. At some point

during their encounter a physical altercation ensued. During the altercation Officer Andrew can

be sitting on top of Pinnock and punching her repeatedly in the head. An unrelated individual

driving by the incident began recording it on his cell phone, and the video was later posted to an

internet video sharing site. It quickly went viral and found its way to news outlets around the

country.

In this incident the CHP did a poor job of getting in front of the potential outcry. The

incident occurred on July 1, 2014. The first news reports of the incident began to surface in late

August of 2014. The CHP should have been better prepared after noticing the severity of the

injuries in this incident. Pinnock's attorney reported she had black eyes, a bloody nose, and

bruises on her back. There is at least one report from the USC Medical Center corroborating
those claims, and saying she has swelling of the face. CHP did not have a statement to issue until

over a month and a half after the incident had occurred. Their initial statement was extremely

bare, lacking facts about the issues surrounding the incident. It simply said that the officer

involved had his peace officer powers suspended, and that an investigation would be conducted.

That is an answer that many law enforcement agencies used for years, but it is not a very

transparent one.

The skating of the facts of the case did not sit well with many in the community and it

was not long before protests began to erupt Los Angeles. Finally in early September after a

significant uproar from the community the Agency Commissioner Joe Farrow got involved and

began to confront the issue head on. He promised an expedited investigation, and began to

actively meet with community leaders to attempt to rectify the situation. All of those actions

where a step in the right direction, but the preliminary issue with the way that CHP handled this

case was the amount of time it took for them to step up and take responsibility. It wasn't until two

months after this incident that transparency was restored and the public was keyed into what

progress was being made on an investigation. CHP leadership should have been prepared for that

the minute they realized closed fist strikes were used on a mentally ill woman who was simply

walking down the freeway. Preparation is half the battle, and CHP was not prepared when this

video went viral.

In addition once the video became public CHP simply laid down a blanket statement that

did little to inform or calm the public's reaction to the events that unfolded. In this situation

simply issuing a statement was nt


http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/09/11/california-highway-patrol-

woman-punched/15493863/

http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-leimert-park-rally-20140823-story.html

http://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/CHP-Officer-Seen-Camera-Beating-Woman-

Stripped-Peace-Officer-Duties-272055081.html

https://ole.sandiego.edu/bbcswebdav/pid-687750-dt-content-rid-

2371352_1/courses/LEPSL-510-MASTER/CommunicationAccoms.pdf

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