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Dalton Lehrer
Peter Fields
English Composition 2
02/14/2019
skyrocket. Due to technological advancements, crime has become easier than ever and more
widespread than ever. Technology like social media, email scamming, and phone scamming
have made modern crime easy. Now criminals can access vast amounts of information and
recruit more members by having a strong social media presence. This may cause others to
wonder how crime can be stopped. Although law enforcement agencies are trying their best, they
haven’t been received well by the American public in recent years. The mixture of unfair media
coverage and an increase of crime has caused a gap in the relationship between police and the
communities they serve. When examining multiple peer reviewed articles from reliable
databases, an individual can realize that law enforcement is stepping up to combat modern crime,
and an improved relationship between the public, and its local law enforcement agency can
create a safer environment. Also, by interviewing several lieutenants and officers around the
Appleton Police Department one can get an idea on how police are taking a stand against an
evolved onslaught of crime, and how a strong bond with the community can help prevent said
crime.
American policing has undergone numerous changes, and reorganizations since its
inception in the late 1700’s. Police were originally organized locally and maintained an
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from intruding upon the affairs of the American public. The primary role of law enforcement was
to react to calls that were handed out instead of taking proactive roles to stop crime. In the late
1800’s and early 1900’s, policing became far more organized. In Aronowitz’s article she states,
believes that, “This was done to professionalize the police force and shift the allegiance to the
organization and chain of command” (Aronowitz 68). By doing this, law enforcement agencies
were able to strengthen their resolve against corruption. Although, times like the 1960’s and the
1970’s caused law enforcement to reexamine its ways. There was mass public upheaval,
mistrust, and hatred due to certain social events that were taking place during the time such as
The Vietnam War for example. After looking over massive amounts of data and statistics, police
found that they were quite ineffective at preventing, and solving crime within the United States.
Improvements needed to be made or crime would have run rampant throughout the nation.
Over the last three decades, the world has undergone extraordinary change. In an article
written by Wilkinson, it is stated that, “Globalization has impacted every aspect of human life
and has revolutionized the face of modern organized crime” (Wilkinson 15). The advancement in
technology has provided new ways for criminals to commit old crime types, and allowed new
proclaims that, “These crime types can be gun running, cyber-crime, human trafficking,
counterfeiting, large scale fraud, extortion, and far more” (Wilkinson 16). The cost and scale of
crimes have increased astronomically due to the change in times as well. Crime is an expensive
aspect of society and the emotional cost can be drastic as well. This “Modern Era” is pushing law
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enforcement to the limit and challenging them to come up with new ways to get the upper hand
on criminals looking to harm the innocent. Wilkinson explains that, “Modern crime can be
technologically sophisticated” (Wilkinson 22). With the evolution of modern crime and
technological advancements that causes crime to become easier comes the struggle to stop those
activities.
Investigators and law enforcement need to be able to build partnerships across law
enforcement agencies, across sectors, and even across borders. Sectors and borders can be
defined by the word jurisdiction. By definition, a jurisdiction is the territory or sphere of activity
over which a legal authority of a court or other institution extends. By having strong partnerships
across jurisdictions, law enforcement can have access to valuable information on possible
subjects, crime scenes, and evidence. This access can help departments everywhere in their
pursuit of justice. The Ted Bundy murders are an excellent example of the lack of
communication between law enforcement agencies in the past. During the 1970’s, the term serial
killer wasn’t thought about. Ted went on a killing spree that spanned multiple states and
jurisdictions. Law enforcement agencies had little to no idea on how to identify Ted, or a
possible suspect because they had no communication between areas. After Ted was finally
caught, law enforcement began to build better communication across sectors, but the damage
was already done. Also, multiple languages, cultures, international politics, and legislation must
be understood. The safety of communities is the top priority of most law enforcement agencies.
An article written by Wilkinson explains how “A clear vision such as this helps when balancing
demands and managing risk” (Wilkinson 22). Although crime has evolved in the past several
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decades, law enforcement has followed in its trail every second of the way. An increase of
technology that assists law enforcement in preventing modern day crime has given police the
There are many important factors that go into better policing strategies, but perhaps no
other factor is as crucial as the relationship between the local law enforcement agency and the
community it is sworn to protect. In a section of his article, Lyons explains that, “Advocates
assume that more proactive policing of disorder, including fear reduction and problem-solving
partnerships, will revitalize communities and allow for citizens to contribute their informal forms
of social control to the provision of public safety” (Lyons 15). In order for a community to
remain safe and secure, its citizens must trust its local police force, otherwise it is less likely that
crimes will be reported in the area. That relationship between community and its police force is
overcome their fears and contribute to the coproduction of social order” (Lyons 15). It is very
important to allow citizens to have a role in keeping the social order of the community because
then it seems like there is less of a power imbalance. When the power gap becomes too large it
can have dire consequences upon the police-community relationship. Allowing individuals
within the community to have some sort of say in the way they are being policed will result in a
higher likelihood that those individuals will report crimes, work with local law enforcement, and
even take steps towards removing some levels of local crime. A more in-tune relation between
the community and police force can create a safer environment for everyone involved.
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A new concept of team policing was introduced in the 1970’s. A section written by
Aronowitz notes that, “With an emphasis on strengthening the relationship between police and
the public, this philosophy introduced decentralization to improve service delivery and
permanent geographical assignment” (Aronowitz 69). New ideas like foot patrol were introduced
to bring officers out of their squad cars, and closer to the American public. This increased public
69). The shift from traditional policing to community policing has worked miracles upon the
American public. The idea that the community is not “them” but instead the community is part of
“us” in law enforcements eyes began to strengthen. By viewing the public as part of the
department, there is less of a rift between the two. The public and local law enforcement should
not be their own separate factions, but instead should be a team. By trusting each other and
working together the community can fight modern crime. Due to rising crime rates, citizens cried
out for more officers and law enforcement agencies did just that. Also, the technology used to
prevent crime took a huge jump and made it difficult for criminals to get the upper hand.
Technology like mobile fingerprinting, mobile investigation management, social media, body
cameras, dash board cameras, and most importantly cellular devices. Also, police decided to take
a more preventative approach and began stopping crime before it was able to begin.
Communities started to report that they felt safer, and that was due to a strong bond between
written by the International City/County Management Association it is stated that, “During 2014
less than half of residents thought that the police department in Durham, NC, was doing a good
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job” (ICMA 2015). The city decided to change that by insisting on transparency within the
Durham Police Department. The police chief, Jose Lopez, made their department’s two main
the public’s trust in Durham Police. The International City/County Management Association
stated that, “Not only did they establish goals, but they identified specific measures, such as
increasing the number of community events that the Durham Police Department would
coordinate and take place in” (ICMA 2015). By partaking in these community events, officers
are moved from their squad cars and begin to be involved with the public. Officers can
communicate directly with citizens and even develop friendships with others. Also, citizens love
to know that their local law enforcement is there to protect them from any danger. The process of
working, helping, and protecting these community events can be very important to the
community-police relationship.
The life of a law enforcement officer in today’s world is not easy. It is extremely
dangerous due to the amount, and complexity of crimes nowadays. The issue with some of the
information provided is that there is no real statistical data that can reliably back up the claims.
Having a lack of statistical data can cause the public to wonder if their local law enforcement
agencies are succeeding in performing their duties. If the public could be provided with
information such as crime rates nationally, globally, or even within their own communities they
may feel more at ease. By releasing this data, police can have a goal to work towards annually.
Also, departments must implement new strategies and philosophies on a larger scale. No
difference is made if only one department changes its ways for the better. There must be a large
shift when law enforcement agencies improve their protocols. In order to be a police officer one
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must exude hard work, commitment, honor, passion, and pursue excellence in the enforcement of
laws.
Dalton Lehrer
English
Peter Fields
03/29/2019
The field of law enforcement is a tough and gritty field that takes a special kind of
person to perform its required tasks. Unfortunately, with all that action, comes mountains
of paperwork. It is a give and take kind of relationship. Some may view this paperwork as a
burden, but it is extremely valuable to the process. Proper documentation of events and
statistics make the world of law enforcement a better place. By having proper
documentation, officers can prove their findings and that their actions were justified.
Having written reports on the call allow officers to recall exactly what happened and why
they took certain actions. There is already a massive amount of paperwork and report
writing but it ultimately may not be enough. The most worrisome gap in current police
research is the lack of actual statistical data. This can make it extremely difficult to provide
factual accounts and reliable arguments. With the number of arrests, drug busts, warrants
served, and other occurrences in the field one would think that there would be an easy way
to access that information. With no real statistical data regarding law enforcement
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dealings, there is no way to prove their reliability. This lack of reliability may cause trust
Not having a clear and easy to attain database of statistical data can leave the public
feeling unfulfilled, especially in today’s world where potentially every action taken could be
questioned. If there was an accurate database available to the public that explained all
police activity quarterly, it may help the public trust its law enforcement agencies. In a way,
this holds law enforcement agencies responsible for its actions on every call. When not
providing actual statistical data it can seem dishonest to the public, and potentially give off
The gap may exist due to a massive influx of crime. Law enforcement is a fast-paced
field with many confusing aspects. It is difficult to keep up with the ever-changing world
and the barrage of crime that citizens have unfortunately become accustomed to. There is
no question that crime has skyrocketed due technological advancements and criminals
becoming more intelligent. These advancements in technology and evolving crime types
are putting a strain on law enforcement. It can become a strenuous task to keep track of
and paperwork may be the least of law enforcement's worries. With all that crime, there is
a heavy emphasis on stopping the activities. Perhaps there is such a heavy emphasis on
stopping the crime that there is a diminished emphasis on recording it. Another reason for
the gap existing is that it is becoming hard to find individuals who want to join the field of
law enforcement. Criminals are becoming more dangerous by the day and the public’s
opinion about police officers is dropping to hazardous levels. Not everyone may view the
field as honorable anymore, and this can cause a downfall in recruiting. This inability to
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find new officers can put a heavy strain on the field. If something is not done now to fix
these issues it may one day be too late; Something must be done now!
The gap should be filled before crime has become so widespread that it is
uncontrollable. By having a reliable database to look at, citizens could feel more at ease in
their communities. They would be able to see the work that their officers are doing and feel
safe in their neighborhoods. Agencies would be able to look back on their work annually
and see what they could improve on and also feel proud of the good work they have done.
It would hold law enforcement accountable for their actions and give the public something
to refer to when they begin to doubt. All of these things would help strengthen the
important relationship between law enforcement and the citizens they are sworn the
protect. This relationship is crucial to stopping crime in its tracks. Data has shown that
should be heavily considered. This database would record and keep track of things such as
arrests, crime rates, crime types, and other important aspects in the world of law
enforcement agencies would be operating like a normal business. Information would come
out often and be accurate. The database would be run by a trusted government agency.
Every three months law enforcement agencies would send their recorded statistics to the
specific governmental agency and the data would be compiled. The information would be
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released to the public and would be made easily accessible to all. Private information
would be kept away from the public though in order to protect the privacy of others. This
database will work because it is a reliable representation of the actions being performed by
law enforcement. The database works in two ways. One way being that it provides
statistical data that is readily available to American Citizens. The second way would work
in a psychological way. It would hold officers responsible and make them strive to perform
their duties to the fullest. Plus with today’s technology it would not be difficult to create
this database. It seems like a simple solution with positive effects for all.
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Works Cited
Lortz, Mitch. “What Is Community Policing?” Everbridge, Mitch Lortz, 28 Dec. 2016,
www.everbridge.com/blog/what-is-community-policing/.
the Power to Punish, 15-34. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 1999.
http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.3998/mpub.15188.7.
Menon, S., & Teo, G. S. (2012). Key challenges in tackling economic and cyber crimes. Journal
doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/13685201211238016
Policing Serious Crime, edited by Gabriele Bammer, ANU Press, 2010, pp. 15–26.
JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt24hbrf.6.
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ways-improve-policecommunity-relations.
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