Police have a problem with ‘law enforcement’
Police in North America are taught to be law enforcement officers. They are not taught to be peace officers.
Police live and work in policy driven bureaucracy, recognized mostly for their “law enforcement” activities. They learn, over time, that prevention activities or peace keeping is like social work and it’s not their job.
Most believe crime prevention or community policing is soft on crime and they don’t practice or support it. They want to work in the real world of “street level enforcement.” This is the culture.
Most police officers learn to like the “things” in policing, such as the appearance of the police cars, the uniforms, the latest guns, the fancy technology, the military equipment, etc. The image begins to dominate their thinking.
None of this has anything to do with the quality of policing provided to the community. Quality policing comes from the minds and hearts of the people doing the work. It does not come from the “things” in today’s policing.
There are few basic recruit training or in-service training programs in North America that teach police officers what their primary role is in a democracy. Unfortunately, they learn extensive policies and procedures, legislation and regulation, technical skills, physical fitness, command and control skills and paramilitary skills.
Very few police agencies teach the history of policing, the purpose of policing and the primary peacekeeping duty of the police. The peacekeeping role and the skills to achieve this should dominate police training. It is the foundation of effective policing. Police officers must understand and accept their basic “peacekeeping” role.
Police are simply not taught to be “peace” officers; whose real purpose is to create peace in the community, to help solve crime and disorder problems, in the interest, well being and coexistence of the entire community. They are taught to be law enforcement officers.
The first task of the police is to prevent crime and disorder rather than simply suppressing it. The police achieve their objective as established by the community, in consultation with the community and to the satisfaction of the community.
Unfortunately, most police officers today accept their role as law enforcement officers and servants of the criminal justice system. They simply become what they are called, law enforcement officers.
Most do not understand basic policing principles as established by the founder of policing, Sir Robert Peel and most likely have never been taught or accept these important principles. What is actually taught in the majority of police agency curriculum is legal, technical and paramilitary.
Police boards and commissions have a duty to determine what is actually taught within their agencies and ensure the curriculum changes. It is likely more important today than any other time in history.
Police must understand their peace keeping, helping role. Until police officers understand, accept and apply it, very little will change.
They must understand that policing is actually no more than contact and interaction between one human being and another. If they understand this, they will be true peace officers.
Then and only then will police provide communities with the quality policing the public is entitled to.
Very few police agencies teach the history of policing, the purpose of policing and the primary peacekeeping duty of the police