Law Enforcement Operations
The current model of policing in the U.S has its roots in the 1829 model of the London Metropolitan Police by Sir Robert Peel. The model has the policing system designed according to the military organizational and administrative structures. The police were initially meant to maintain law and order without using force but today, police militarization has led to an intersect of the police and the military in terms of weapons, uniforms, funding, and tactics. Many questions have been raised however on whether the police officers have adequate training regarding sensitivity to individual and group psychology in a crowd legitimately protesting on an issue that is perceived to be either right or wrong.
Militarization of Police
The American policing department has undergone three different eras; the political era between 1840-1930, the reform era between 1930-1970, and the current era referred to as the community policing. Community policing aims at building a tie with the member of the community as well as working closely with them to maintain stability and order. The police look forward to enhancing their relationship with the members of the community through continued interactions. Through the interactions, it becomes possible to create partnerships and strategies that help to reduce crime in the community. Community members feel involved in the security process and are more willing to participate in activities that promote general safety. On the other hand, the militarization of police is posing a great threat to the community policing Programme. the Law Enforcement Agencies today have more and easier access to military weapons which has left the community and the general public feeling that it has increased the violent behavior among the police. The military equipment leads to a militarization culture which can be categorized into four dimensions namely; material, cultural, organizational, and operational (Kingshott, 2015).
Public safety is greatly compromised by militarization. The police have developed a culture of relying on violence in order to resolve the problem in the community. The use of violence has created a barrier between the community members and the police hence breaking the cordial relationship that exists in community policing. The organizational dimension is comprised of the ranks that exist within the policing paradigm that mimic that of the military. There are different units within the police department where some have been entitled more power than others which has increased communication disparity within the police department. Various police units are deployed to different regions where the ranks come into play depending on the risk factor of the situation at hand. The availability of the military equipment to the police paradigm results in the type of training similar to that of the military. President Bill Clinton signed the H.R. 3230 bill into law, which contained section 1033. The bill was known as the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1997 where the 1033 program allowed the secretary of Defense to sell or provide the extra equipment used by the military to the LEA which included the police. Over $1.5 billion in terms of equipment had been transferred to the LEAs between the year 2006 and April of 2014 (Lieblich, & Shinar, 2017). The transfer of high-level military equipment to the police has led to an increased culture of violence within the LEAs.
Civil liberties are violated in the police militarization strategy. As opposed to community policing which is based on interactions with the police, the militarization of policing is based on the notion of a threat to the liberal order. One of the characteristics exhibited by the militarization is the preventive nature that assumes that there will be extreme violence that would require the use of force in response. The second characteristic is its mass approach where extreme force is targeted at masses regardless of innocence or guilt nature of individuals. One good example is the presence of armored police in the legitimate protest regarding the Ferguson incident where the police pointed guns at the masses instilling fear on their freedom to protest.
Militarization and Terrorism
In my opinion, the militarization of the police is justified and right, however, there have to be limits to which they can serve. In times of terror, I highly approve of the police making use of the military strategies to maintain order in society. Acts of terrorism in the United States could destabilize the globe in general given that it is a superpower. The united states is the world’s most powerful economic as political power which means that the entire state in the world would be affected if any terrorism activities were aimed at the U.S. It is of importance, therefore, that the police are trained on how to use military tactics and forces which should only be used exclusively in War on Terror. Gone are the days when the police would handle cases of crime and drug without labeling them as war. Slowly, a new phenomenon named as a war on drugs was introduced which was a reflection of the use of forces by the police to fight crimes related to drugs.
The police paramilitary unit saw a shift in SWAT who received training from the military. As Special Weapons Attack Teams, they adopted the norms and behavior of the military in dealing with drug crimes. Given the increased terror attacks and more specifically the 9/11 attacks, the U.S security department tried to justify the militarization of the police department as a measure to reinforce security. SWAT which stands for Special Weapons and Tactics are deployed to perform in terrorism and hostage incidents. Their scope of activity has expanded to the War on Terror. The Department of Homeland Security was established since the 9/11 attacks which in return has led to the increased procurement of military equipment to the police.
Public Action against Militarization
The militarization of the police can be described as a psychological process that has an impact on the police officers and the entire department. Absorbing the military worldview where the use of force is the way to go and is relatively acceptable and desirable in problem-solving has ultimately affected the way of thinking and acting of the police (Kingshott, 2015). The citizens are constantly protesting against police brutality in various situations. One of the circumstances where the public feels that the police use too much unnecessary force is when dealing with cases of firearms or drugs and more specifically among the black community. Police have been reported to make a patrol in the neighborhoods that are mainly comprised of black residents and will use force against any black person they perceive to be a suspect even without evidence.
In the Ferguson Case involving Michael Brown who was reported to have stolen a box of Swisher cigars. He was pursued by an armed police officer who shot him six times that led to a ma protest against his brutal murder by the police. The mass protest was a reflection of the attitude of the community towards the police officers behaving more like military forces. In the 2014 Ferguson incident, armored police officers with camouflaged uniform were deployed to disperse the protesting crowd as well as in the Standing Rock fields in 2016. Many people including military officials were left questioning the extent to which the police were empowered to use military power in a legitimate protest. The use of military weapons and the deployment of a sniper as well as military vehicles in the Ferguson protests escalated tension among the community members. The presence of the SWAT team made the scenario feel like a warzone.
Alternatives to Militarization
Alternative strategies should be used by the police such as persistence on community policing and community-oriented policing. In community policing, members of the community are encouraged to give Helpance to the police in preventing crimes (Wilson, 2013). The police take up the role of advising community members on the right way to live and the importance of avoiding crimes. The members are also educated on the measures to take when they witness a crime. There is a constant dialogue between the community, the police, and the government resources in an attempt to address issues that affect the community. Communication with the community members is made through meeting in the town halls, meeting with interest groups, police polls, and surveys, as well as in-house calls. The ability to understand the needs and desires of the community members as well as what they are willing to do to mitigate crime is effective in enhancing law and order.
Community-Oriented policing makes use of the SARA model that helps the police in problem-solving strategies. The model is made up of scanning, analysis, response, and assessment steps that govern the problem-solving and decision-making procedures. The police are able to identify patterns of crime within the community through scanning where they can proceed to analyze the root cause of the perceived crime. It is the community members who are directly affected by the crime that provide information to the police. After identifying the cause, the police work together with the community members to identify a solution to the problem. Through the SARA model, the police are able to come up with a long-serving solution to crimes. The model helps in achieving solutions that change the perception of the community members towards crime rather than dealing with the criminal justice system. It is necessary that the police carry out a continuous assessment on the workability of the solution and make necessary adjustment where need be. Community-Oriented Policing, therefore, eliminates cases of alienation of the community members hence minimizing the rates of crime since the community feels responsible for their own security (Wilson, 2013).
Conclusion
The militarization of the police undermines the legitimacy of the police department which results in increased violence. Citizens will be more violent knowing that the police will respond to a certain situation with violence. For example, the increase in police resistance among black communities is mainly as a result of the fact that the police respond to black crimes with a more intense form of violence than they would to other races. This explains why there is increased gun violence among black communities which has led to conflict between the police and the black community. The lack of trust in the police has resulted in increased fear and hatred which undermines the legitimacy of the police. Community support towards the policing process increases police legitimacy and they are able to be more in control and enhances problem prevention besides problem-solving which results in more orderly communities.
References
Kingshott, B. F. (2015). The Militarization of the Police: A New Policing Era?
Lieblich, E., & Shinar, A. (2017). The case against police militarization. Mich. J. Race & L., 23, 105.
Wilson, J. M. (2013). Community policing in America. Routledge.
