Identify and discuss eight recurring reasons why change occurs in law enforcement.I have attached a classmates response ONLY BECAUSE i feel like she copys and paste from the book. Its a short response for the discussion board not a summary of what we have read. I hope it helps and thanks for always taking my assignments.
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dentify and discuss eight recurring reasons why change occurs in law enforcement.
Eight recurring reasons that may serve as a catalyst for change in law enforcement are: 1) catastrophic
events; 2) newly elected mayors; 3) the embarrassment of a political figure and or political scandal;
4)the retirement, resignation, or firing of the chief of police which leads to departmental evaluations
and change; 5) the election of a new sheriff who wishes to implement changes; 6) when a sheriffs
actions impact politics or when other major expectations are not honored by a sheriff; 7) the sheriffs
conduct becomes an issue which may result in their dismissal; and, 8) low moral within a police
department. (Swanson, Territo, & Taylor, 2016, p. 651).
1-Catastrophic events can mean a number of things. It can mean major large-scale events such as
terrorism or natural disasters that are not adequately responded to and or prepared for which may lead
to the dismissal of those in charge or general change in the way things will be done moving forward.
September 11, 2001 is a great example of this as maybe changes have been adopted and employed
throughout departments and agencies all over the nation to ensure better communication and
interoperability moving forward. This can also be a “less extreme” catastrophic event that takes place
locally and causes law enforcement to act in a way that may be deemed as unprofessional or even
unconstitutional. For example, if police are searching for violent criminal and illegally enter a house
because they think this criminal might be there, even if he is not. While their intentions might be to
prevent this on-going violent activity, this could lead to major civil liberty litigations etc. that would be
detrimental to the department and could therefore promote change in procedures or just cause an
officer to be removed or punished in some capacity.
2-Newly elected mayors could promote change in law enforcement by simply replacing a chief of police
with a chief of police of their own choosing. “The new mayor may bring his or her own vision of how the
agency should be organized and operated; alternatively, the new chief is selected with the
understanding that he or she has a mandate to implement certain changes that are consistent with the
new mayor’s political and philosophical vision of governance (Swanson, Territo, & Taylor, 2016, p. 651)
3-The embarrassment of a political figure or political scandal in general can promote change in law
enforcement. This can occur if the political figure(s) involved feel that the embarrassment is the fault of
the law enforcement agency in some capacity. They may then feel justified in removing the chief of
police or anyone else they feel may be involved and replacing them with someone else as a result. This
could also result in policy changes and or other guidelines or rules being implemented to prevent the
situation from occurring again.
4-The retirement, resignation, or firing of a chief of police can also impact changes in law enforcement.
Every chief of police has a certain away of managing things and running their department and this can
be a foundational way in which change occurs when a new chief of police is appointed. Furthermore, if
and when a consultant is hired to conduct an evaluation of the department the report may then be
given to the new chief as a blueprint for change in the department. (Swanson, Territo, & Taylor, 2016, p.
651)
5 & 6- The election of a new sheriff can result in changes in the department based on what this
individual may see as necessary or unnecessary, what could potentially be needed, or what changes in
polices and procedures they deem fit moving forward. This may impact the equipment being used or the
removal of equipment deemed unnecessary, or could even impact human assets or positions in the
department in the same capacity. Furthermore, a sheriff can also effect changes in law enforcement
whenever their actions impact politics or when other major expectations are not honored. As a sheriff or
chief serves as the highest ranking representation of a department, political unrest or poor community
relations may not be tolerated and could directly lead to the removal or said individual or continued
strained relations which may ultimately lead to change.
7 -Whenever a chief’s conduct and behavior leads to their dismissal this can also serve as a prominent
catalyst for change. One example offered to us through our textbook is as follows: “In one instance, a
chief arrived at the department’s annual police officers’ ball when he already had been drinking heavily.
As the evening wore on, he got progressively more drunk and refused to allow his staff members to
drive him home, electing to stay at the party, where he got into several major confrontations with
members of his department and one of their spouses. His dismissal was predicated on a public debate:
“He is supposed to be a model for others; if he cannot control himself, how can he lead others?”
(Swanson, Territo, & Taylor, 2016, p. 652). Anyone in a management or leadership position must serve
as a constant reminder for what the standards of an organization are and what the on-going
expectations are for all the employees they are in charge of.
8 – If and when morale in the police department is low, “too many things seem to be going wrong, the
present administration is always reacting to problems for which it seems no thought has been given or
preparation has been made, or citizen groups are vociferous in their criticisms of the department. In
such situations, police unions or associations may also oppose the chief and have given him or her a
vote of no confidence” (Swanson, Territo, & Taylor, 2016, p. 653). Morale in any organization is
important as it encourages individuals to do their jobs and promotes the success of the organization in
general.
References
Swanson, Charles R., Leonard Territo, Robert Taylor. Police Administration: Structures, Processes, and
Behavior, 8th Edition. Pearson Learning Solutions, 10/2016. VitalBook file.
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