Police-Citizen Relationships in the United States Police – Citizen Relationships

The relationship between the police and the public is vital in the enforcement of law and order in society. Frosty relations between the two create obstacles to proper policing, creating loopholes for crime to thrive. There exists mistrust between the public and police, which compromises the operations of the security agencies. The public may know persons who engage in crimes such as drug trafficking and abuse but will choose to mind its business rather than help the police track down the suspects and subject them to the law. When the police gain public trust, its work becomes easier as citizens will freely share information on any potential criminal activity within the community. However, this is not the case where the public sees the police as their enemy. The militarization of police, as well as the failure to protect the identity of informers, fuel mistrust between the public and the police service. The issue of stereotyping, especially directed towards African Americans, Muslims, and Latinos, is another issue that contributes to mistrust between police and citizens and police in New York and the US at large. Members of the aforementioned communities are likely to view police officers as potential troublemakers because of the long history of the ruthlessness of the police towards people who come from these groups.

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About three decades ago, the New York City Police Department changed its approach to policing after it learned that the public did not trust the police and that this hurt enforcement of law and order. Community policing was introduced to promote collaboration between members of the public and the police in enhancing security. The police and citizens' relationship substantially improved then to the security of New York State. However, over the years, the trust between police and citizens has dwindled after police brutality become a common issue within the police department. According to Verbeek and Peters (2018), the relationship between the police-citizen relationship is influenced by several factors that include police behaviors towards the public. The militarization of the police activities drives away public cooperation because citizens perceive police officers as ruthless and inhuman. At the same time, racial profiling of African Americans and Hispanics is an endemic issue in the police department, where members of the aforementioned communities are considered to have high criminal potential than their counterparts the white. The net effect of this issue is mistrust between the police and African Americans and Hispanics who feel are major victims of police brutality and harassment because of their race.

According to Oberwittler and Roché (2018), the police-citizen relationship varies from one country to another because of the differences in how police handle crime and members of the public. In countries such as Switzerland where the police are too civil, the relationship between police and citizens is more positive than in countries where the police force is militarized. Police ought to be seen as problem solvers and friends of the public rather than trouble to the public. The use of force and threats on the community fosters a hatred for the police in the community, which in turn leads to the public losing interest in cooperating with security agencies. As a consequence, Oberwittler and Roché contend that police-citizen relationship is critical in policing because it determines to what degree citizens can help the police to perform its roles, especially when it comes to investigating and prosecuting crimes. Police can appeal to the public by being civil in its operations rather than being ruthless when handling suspects. Sometimes police harass innocent people in the pretext of a crackdown on crime, which ends up working against a positive police-citizen relationship.

Gaines and Kappeler (2011) asserted that policing is made easier when the police force operates from within the community and with the help of the community. Police officers are more approachable and acceptable to the public if they live within the community and work with people; they understand well than when they live in police camps or do not have prior relations with the community they work in. An understanding between the police and citizens is vital in ending mistrust between them, which is needed to enhance cooperation in combating crime. In some countries, police officers come from the communities they serve, which makes it easier for the public to cooperate with them easily to enforce security. According to Gaines and Kappeler (2011), the relationship between citizens and police play a critical role in strengthening police intelligence and ability to deal with complex security issues such as drug trafficking, without which the police would spend more time than necessary to unravel the truth behind criminal activities or even fail to get the truth.

Effective management of police requires that the leadership cultivates a positive relationship with citizens of the particular area it controls. The public trust is a vital pillar in the success of policing, which implies that police leadership should create strategies through which the police and the public can work closely to further law and order (Baker, 2011). Antagonism between the two makes it hard for law enforcement authority to effectively manage insecurity because citizens keep away vital information that would help the police to apprehend and prosecute suspects. According to Baker (2011), the police can create a healthy relationship with the public through law-abiding citizens, who can be co-opted as informers and opinion shapers on how best to manage security issues within the community. The relationship gives the public confidence to work with police to further mutual interests. The police force's major objective is to maintain law and order while the interest of the public is to live in a safe environment. The interrelation between the two means that the citizen-police relationship is achievable and can be made positive.

Berrym (2000) observed that the New York Police Department rolled out a Courtesy, Professionalism, and Respect program in 1996 to try and create a positive relationship between the department and citizens who had lost trust in the police. Respect for human rights by the police makes them trustworthy and attractive to the public than when they behave ruthlessly towards suspects. Professionalism requires that police officers observe the law and human rights when executing their duties, a factor that had been compromised by regular reports of police brutality and harassment. According to Berrym (2000), members of the public detest police brutality and find it hard to cooperate with police when they feel that they are potential victims of its cruelty. Members of the New York community had valid reasons to pressurize the police department to carry out reforms to improve its public relations. The police were less diversified and orchestrated stereotyping of citizens based on their race, a factor that worked against positive working relationships with the public. African Americans and Hispanics viewed the police as an enemy because of how they were treated by the security agencies. The same problem is still prevalent today in the New State and America at large. The New York Police Department managed to improve the police-citizen relationship by carrying out workshops and seminars to sensitive the police on how to create harmonious relations with the public. Professionalism, courtesy, and respect were emphasized to create a sense of civility in the police, which was lacking and contributed to public mistrust.

Problem and Theory

Problem: The police without a positive relationship with citizens cannot effectively manage security and order in the society because it needs the cooperation of the public to combat crime.

Theory: Positive police-citizen relationship should help to manage and reduce crime within the community effectively.

Variables

Independent: The independent variable is the police-citizen relationship.

Dependent: The dependent variable is the crime rate within the community.

Hypothesis: The community in which there is a positive police-citizens relationship is less likely to experience a high crime rate than those in which the police-citizen relationship is negative.