Public trust in police will return when police listen
The Connecticut Police Reform Act has been met with much friction on both sides of the argument about the need for more guidelines in the area of policing. The police unions are upset the government is enacting legislation while much of the public is upset over excessive force, racism and lack of transparency.
But much of the friction could be eased if police departments focused on those aspects of the profession that make it special.
Ret. Col. Don Snider, a West Point professor, said a profession is different from a “regular job” because of a few critical elements. A profession, he said, provides a vital service to the public and does so in subordination to the public it serves; requires expertise that includes unique skills, organization, systems, and material; requires the continued development of its members; operates by its expertise, guided by its values and professional ethics; holds itself accountable, policing itself to operate by its values and ethics; and is based upon trust it earns from the public it serves. In return, the profession is granted a degree of autonomy to perform its service.
These elements hold true in three traditional professions we all know: medicine, ministry and law. A doctor, for example, provides a unique service based upon expert knowledge. That doctor should continue to continue to learn, even after medical school, to be current with the
latest knowledge. The decisions the doctor makes are based upon expert knowledge guided by a commitment to the Hippocratic Oath. The medical association holds doctors accountable for their work. The doctor practices medicine under a license by granted by the public to adhere to the trust given to the person. And what happens when that trust is broken with the public? A doctor loses their license to practice and may even face legal consequences.
These same principles must apply to the
police. The issue is the broken trust police had with the public they serve. What happens when this trust is broken?
As a retired naval officer and former professor at the U.S. Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island, I was deeply involved with the Navy’s efforts a few years ago to reinvigorate itself. After two ship collisions in 2017 that cost lives, the public trust was broken. Investigations showed the Navy failed to hold itself accountable in decisions made in certification and employment of the ships and crews. As a result, the public (through Congress) enacted very specific guidelines for the Navy, adding extra requirements and removing some of its autonomy.
This is what has happened to the police. It’s not just the excessive use of force, the poor attitudes of some of its members, the racists in their ranks or other high-visibility incidents. It has been the failure to hold itself accountable and maintain the trust given to it by the public it serves. Until that trust can be regained, this tension will continue.
Trust does not come easy, especially when it is broken. It must be earned before it is granted. This relationship is very similar to that of a marriage that is based upon trust and respect for both members. When infidelity occurs, the trust is broken, which can lead to a breakup or a long rebuilding road.
The police departments across our state and nation need to start along that road to recovery by taking a hard look at themselves and listening to the angry public they serve. They must show the public that they can and will hold themselves accountable to the special values and ethics they claim to hold dear.
We depend on our police in times of an emergency, and it is vital we trust them to respond appropriately. Until that trust is earned back, it will be a long a bumpy road ahead.