Public Trust as a Challenge in Modern Policing
Today police officers have to deal with very complex challenges that are constantly evolving. According to Albrecht (2011), most of these challenges are usually a new twist to existing problems, and others are extremely new and wouldn’t have been envisioned a decade ago. As a consequence, police officers and other law enforcement agencies struggle to adjust to such emerging challenges which limit their ability to do their work properly or enhance public safety effectively. One of the issues facing the police today is that they are struggling with the challenge of restoring public trust, a factor that significantly impacts on the recruitment and retention of police officers. This discussion seeks to explain why this challenge exists and recommend some measures that can be undertaken to overcome it.
Today the police have been rocked with very high profile incidents which have diminished public confidence towards law enforcement officers while at the same time exasperating the existing challenges. According to (Lloyd, 2017), the Ferguson indecent where Michael Brown Jr, an 18 years African American was fatally shot by police officer Darren Wilson raised eyebrows on the extent of police brutality and racism that existed in today’s police service. At a time when the police were under extreme pressure to maintain a good image within the public’s eye, such an incident only served to exasperate the situation. With more of similar incidents emerging, police officers and other law enforcement agencies are now struggling to reach out to communities mainly because they have already lost the confidence and trust of the public. This challenge remains a serious issue that is affecting modern policing because lack of public trust and confidence makes it difficult for the police to engage in any collaborative efforts with the public, a factor that make police even harder to undertake.
As a consequence of a tarnished public image, today police are struggling to recruit and retain the existing experienced officers. Lloyd (2017) argues that high profile cases involving police brutality and discriminations like the Ferguson incident are making it quite challenging to convince potential young recruits on why they should undertake policing as a career. While some may have admired policing and law enforcement in general as an attractive career during their younger years, a tarnished public image means that these young people begin to develop reservations towards the profession and they now perceive it to be a risky profession. In addition, police are struggling to retain the existing experienced officers because some of them become demoralized to continue with their duties due to growing public apathy against the police (Thompson, 2018). In other words, while policing was respected and admired in the past, this respect is slowly fading away due to a declining public image, a factor that discourages some officers to continue practicing the profession. As such, it is quite evident that the recruitment and retention police officers are a serious concern that has to be addressed swiftly.
These identified issues are having a huge impact on the organizational function and design of policing because it has to be set up in a manner that ensures that public trust and confidence in policing is restored. Winder (2017) argues that community engagement is an important element of modern policing and it requires commitment from all levels. Based on this understanding, modern organizational function and design of policing has established appropriate mechanisms that will ensure that police officers establish strong relationships with the communities within their jurisdiction. Such an approach is aimed at ensuring that issues arising from restoration of public trust are dealt with appropriately.
Another key recommendation to solve the identified challenges would be to undertake enhanced training programs targeting both experienced and new police officers. For example, Winders (2017) proposes that police education departments should be equipped with an enhanced training curriculum that focuses on equipping police officers with mental health safety skills, leadership and crisis intervention skills. This curriculum should be updated regular to address any emerging challenges that might affect the police service. Adopting these measure would ensure that police officers are equipped with the necessary skills to address most of the issues identified.
From the foregoing, today police are struggling with the challenge of restoring public trust, a factor that significantly impacts on the recruitment and retention of police officers. This development can be blamed on the high profile incidents that have rocked modern policing such as the Ferguson incident which has diminished public confidence towards the police while at the same time exasperating the existing challenges. With more similar incidents emerging, police officers and other law enforcement agencies are now struggling to reach out to communities mainly because they have already lost the confidence and trust of the public. Moreover, police are struggling to retain the existing experienced officers because some of them become demoralized to continue with their duties due to growing public apathy against the police. Among the recommended measures would be to establish appropriate mechanisms that will ensure that police officers have strong relationships with the communities within their jurisdiction. This can be achieved by ensuring that existing police training curriculum is updated regularly and equipped with mental health safety skills, leadership and crisis intervention skills.
References
Albrecht, J. F. (2011). Significant Issues Facing Twenty-First Century Law Enforcement. Effective Crime Reduction Strategies, 533–534. DOI: 10.1201/b10596-31
Lloyd, I. J. (2017). 17. Enforcement issues. Law Trove. DOI: 10.1093/he/9780198787556.003.0017
Thompson, A. (2018). Challenges facing law enforcement in the 21st century: hearing before the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security, and Investigations of the Committee on the Judiciary, House of Representatives, One Hundred Fifteenth Congress, first session, May 17, 2017. Washington: U.S. Government Publishing Office.
Winders, D. (2017). Administrative Law Enforcement, Warnings, and Transparency. SSRN Electronic Journal. DOI: 10.2139/ssrn.2920870
