1. Chapter Eleven Police Discretion
Police in America
Chapter Eleven
Police Discretion
© 2013 McGraw-Hill Companies. All Rights Reserved.
McGraw-Hill

2. Discretion in Police Work
Discretion is involved in several critical decisions made by the police.
Consider the following:
Domestic Violence Arrests
Mental Health Commitments
Traffic Tickets
Juvenile Court Referrals
Deadly Force

3. A Definition of Discretion
Official action by a criminal justice official, based on that official’s judgment about the best course of action
Discretion: The freedom to act on one’s own judgment; refers to the latitude involved police officers’ decision making.

4. Aspects of Police Discretion
Street Level Bureaucrats
Description for patrol officers because they make decisions that produce actual police policy as it affect citizens
Decision to arrest makes them the gatekeepers of the criminal justice system
Police discretion determines public policy

5. Potential Abuse Of Discretion
Discrimination
Denial of Due Process
Systematic Underenforcement of the Law
Poor Personnel Management
Inconsistent Policy

6. Proper Exercise of Discretion
The Use of Good Judgment
Efficient Use of Scare Police Resources
Individualized Justice
Sound Public Policy

7. Decision Points and Decision Makers
Patrol Officer Decisions
Detectives’ Decisions
Police Managers’ Decisions

8. Underlying Sources of Police Discretion
The nature of the criminal law
Demands officers exercise discretion and decide whether the crime fits the definition of the law
Conflicting public expectations
Some people believe certain behaviors should be legal, despite what the law says
Social and medical issues
Homelessness, chronic alcohol abuse, mental health problems
The work environment of policing
Working alone vs. in pairs, lack of direct supervision, police-citizen encounters in private places
Limited police resources

9. Factors Limiting Patrol Officer Discretion
Legal Factors
Supreme Court Decisions
State Court Decisions
State Law
Administrative Factors
Department Policy
Supervisions
Organizational Culture Factors
- Peer officer culture
Situational factors
Seriousness of crime
Strength of evidence
Preference of the victim
Relationship between victim and suspect
Demeanor of suspect
Characteristics of victim
Race, Gender, Ethnicity of citizen
Characteristics of neighborhood
Characteristics of Individual officer

10. Other Factors Influencing Discretionary Decisions
Organizational Factors
Official Department policy
Informal organizational culture
Social and Political Factors
Local Political Culture

11. The Control of Discretion
The Need for Control
Must control police discretion in order to prevent abuse of police authority
Myth of Full Enforcement
Exists to maintain public image of authority
Prevent the raising of questions about equal protection of the law
Allows supervisors to avoid closely reviewing officer behavior and developing performance expectations
Abolish Discretion?
Joseph Goldstein argues discretion is illegal
Police do not have legal authority to nullify criminal law by not arresting a criminal offender
Enhancing Professional Judgment
Through education and training
Informal Bureaucratic Controls
An arrest raises an officer’s visibility since it is reviewed by a number of higher ranking officers
Written Policies
Administrative rulemaking

12. Administrative Rulemaking
Administrative Rulemaking: Seeks to guide the exercise of police discretion through written departmental rules and the requirement that officers complete written reports on how they handled situations.
Examples: Deadly force, domestic violence, high speed pursuits.

13. Principles of Administrative Rulemaking
Confining Discretion
“fixing boundaries”
Structuring Discretion
A rational system for developing policies
Checking Discretion
Decisions are reviewed by another person
Contributions of Written Rules:
Provide directions for officers on how to handle critical incidents
Promote consistent performance
Provide basis for effective supervision

14. Impact of Administrative Rulemaking
Has produced significant improvements in policing
Fyfe found that a restrictive policy on deadly force adopted by the NYC police dept. in 1972 reduced weekly average no. of firearm discharges by 29.1%
Alpert’s study of high-speed pursuit policies found that where restrictive policies were adopted, there was a reduction in the no. of pursuits, accidents, and both officer and citizen injuries.
In the LA Sheriff’s Dept. the no. of citizens bitten by K9 unit dogs declined by 90% after the dept. put in place new controls over how dogs could be deployed.

15. Insuring Compliance with Rules
CALEA stands for Commission of Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies. Its book of rules is Accreditation Standards for Law Enforcement Agencies.
The primary simple strategy for ensuring compliance is to require police officers to file written reports after each incident and to have those reports automatically reviewed by supervisors.

16. Codifying Rules: The Standard Operation Procedure (SOP) Manual
Written rules and policies for a police dept.
Central tool of modern police management
Many departments place their SOP manuals online to increase transparency and promote openness

17. Systematic Rulemaking
Davis and Goldstein argue that a systematic approach allows the police to anticipate problems before they become crises
Represents a professional approach to planning
Attempts to encourage systematic rulemaking have been made through CALEA accreditation Standards for Law Enforcement Agencies

18. Citizen Oversight and Policymaking
Policy Reviews
Individual citizen complaints are analyzed to determine whether the underlying cause was a lack of policy (or a bad policy) on the part of the police department
Recommendations for new policy are made as a result

19. The Limits of Administrative Rulemaking
It is impossible to write a rule that covers every situation
Formal rules may encourage evasion or lying
Written rules may only make the situation worse and create uncertainty
Elaborate rules may create a negative atmosphere in the department