Chapter Five History and Structure of American Law

1
Chapter FiveHistory and Structure of American
Law Enforcement

• After completing this chapter, you should
• be able to

• Briefly describe the jurisdictional limitations
  of American law enforcement.
• Trace the English origins of American law
  enforcement.
• Discuss the early development of American law
  enforcement.

2
Continued

• Describe the major developments that have
  occurred in policing in America.
• Describe the structure of American law
  enforcement.
• Explain the relationship between the FBI and the
  Department of Homeland Security.
• Discuss the development and growth of private
  security in the United States.

3
The Limited Authority of American Law Enforcement

• The United States has almost 18,000 public
• law enforcement agencies. The jurisdiction
• of each agency is carefully limited by law.

• Law enforcement is also limited by the
• procedural law derived from U.S. Supreme
• Court decisions.

4
Jurisdiction

• The right or authority of a justice agency to
• act in regard to a particular subject matter,
• territory, or person.

5
The Limited Authority of American Law Enforcement

• In comparison with other democratic
• nations of the world, the United States has
  remarkably more police agencies
• that operate under far more restrictions on
• their authority.

• Like much of the criminal justice system, this
  limited law enforcement model came from England.

6
Are Fort Myers police issuing tickets outside
jurisdiction?

• http//www.fox4now.com/multimedia/videos/?bctid16
  43104834001

7
Off-Duty Cops Can Write Tickets In
Any Jurisdiction

• http//fox2now.com/2011/09/27/fox-files-off-duty-c
  ops-can-write-tickets-in-any-jurisdiction/

8
English Roots

• Our familiar law enforcement system, in
• which uniformed officers respond to calls for
• help and plainclothes detectives investigate,
• developed over hundreds of years in
• England.

9
The Tithing System

• By the twelfth century in England, the
• practice of resolving disputes privately gave
• way to a system of group protection, called
• the tithing system.

Tithing System
A private self-held protection system in early
medieval England, in which a group of ten
families, or a tithing, agreed to follow the
law, keep the peace in their areas, and bring
law violators to justice.
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The Tithing System

• In larger areas, ten tithings were grouped
• together to form a hundred, and one or
• several hundreds constituted a shire. The
• shire was under the direction of the shire
• reeve.

The shire reeve was assisted by posses.
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Shire Reeve and Posses
Shire Reeve
In medieval England, the chief law enforcement
officer in a territorial area called a shire
later called the sheriff.
Posses
Groups of able-bodied citizens of a community,
called into service by a sheriff or constable to
chase and apprehend offenders.
12
The Constable-Watch System

• The Statute of Winchester, in 1285,
• formalized the constable-watch system of
• protection.

• One man from each parish was selected to be
  constable.

• Citizens were drafted as (unpaid) watchmen, and
  were required to come to the aid of a constable
  or watchman who called for help.

13
The Constable-Watch System

• A system of protection in early England in
• which citizens, under the direction of a
• constable, or chief peacekeeper, were
• required to guard the city and to pursue
• criminals.

Constable
The peacekeeper in charge of protection in early
English towns.
14
The Constable-Watch System

• Two elements of this system made their way
• to the American colonies

• The people were the police.
• The organization of the protection system was
  local.

15
The Bow Street Runners

• In 1748, a London magistrate named Henry
• Fielding (best known for his writings,
• including the novel Tom Jones) founded the
• first publicly funded detective force in a
• district of London known as Bow Street.

• The Bow Street Runners paved the way for a more
  professional response to crime.

16
The London Metropolitan Police

• The Industrial Revolution brought a huge influx
  of people into London, and along with them,
  increasing poverty, public disorder, and crime.
• In 1829, Parliament created the London
  Metropolitan Police, a 1,000-member professional
  force.

17
The London Metropolitan Police

• The police became known as bobbies or
• peelers after Robert Peel, the British Home
  Secretary, who had prodded Parliament for their
  creation.

18
The London Metropolitan Police

• The police were organized around Peels
• Principles of Policing.

• The London Police were organized according to
  military rank and structure.
• The police were under the command of two
  magistrates (later called commissioners).
• The main function of the police was to prevent
  crime by preventive patrol of the community.

19
Robert Peels Principles of Policing
20
The Development of American Law Enforcement

• The United States has more police departments
  than any other nation in the world.
• Virtually every community has its own police
  force, creating a great disparity in the quality
  of American police personnel and service.

21
Municipal Police Forces

• In 1844, New York City created the first paid,
  unified police force in the U.S.
• Other cities followed suit, creating their own
  police departments, often merely an organization
  of the existing day and night watch.
• It was not until after the Civil War that police
  forces routinely began to wear uniforms, carry
  nightsticks and even carry firearms.

22
State Police Agencies

• Growing populations, as well as the inability
• of some local sheriffs and constables to
• control crime, led states to create their own
• law enforcement agencies.

• Texas officially created the Rangers in 1835.
• Pennsylvania established the first modern state
  law enforcement agency in 1905.
• By the 1930s, every state had some form of state
  law enforcement agency.

23
Conflicting Roles

• Americans have never been sure what role they
  want police officers to play.
• Police have acted as
• peacekeepers.
• social workers.
• crime fighters.
• public servants.

24
Community Policing

• A desire to actually improve neighborhoods
• led to the modern concept of community
• policing, which involves
• A problem-oriented approach aimed at handling a
  broad range of troublesome situations.
• Greater emphasis on foot patrols.
• Building a relationship with citizens, so they
  would be more willing to help the police.

25
Community Policing

• A contemporary approach to policing that
• actively involves the community in a working
• partnership to control and reduce crime.

26
The Structure of American Law Enforcement

• American law enforcement agencies are
• extremely diverse in
• Jurisdictions.
• Responsibilities.
• Employers (hospitals, colleges, transit
  authorities may have their own police).

27
Public Law Enforcement Agencies in the United
States
28
Local Policing and Its Duties

• If people know a law enforcement agent at all, it
  is probably a local police officer, but it is
  doubtful that even they understand what local
  police officers in America really do, besides
  what they see on television and in movies.

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Municipal Police Departments

• Most police departments in the United States
  employ fewer than 50 sworn officers.

continue on next slide
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Characteristics of Local Full-Time Police Officers
31
Local Police Duties

• Four categories of local police duties are
• Law enforcement investigating crime and
  arresting suspects.
• Order maintenance or peacekeepingcontrolling
  crowds, intervening in domestic disputes.
• Serviceescorting funeral processions, taking
  people to the hospital.
• Information gatheringdetermining neighborhood
  reactions to a proposed liquor license,
  investigating a missing child.

32
Organizational Structure

• How a police agency is structured depends
• on
• The size of the agency.
• The degree of specialization.
• The philosophy the leadership has chosen.
• The political context of the department.
• The history and preferences of a particular
  community.

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Organizational Structure

• Large departments have many specialized
• departments.

Small departments rarely have specialized departme
nts, or officers trained in complex investigation.
34
Organizational Structure

• Police departments are usually organized in a
  military structure. Some people think a military
  structure does not fit police work because the
  work is so varied, and the structure impedes the
  flow of communication.

35
The Political Context of Policing

• Police departments are part of larger
• governments. Municipalities generally
• operate under one of four forms
• Strong Mayor-Council.
• Weak Mayor-Council.
• City Manager.
• Commission.

Each style of government varies in the amount of
control citizens have over their leaders,
including the chief of police.
36
County Law Enforcement

• A substantial portion of law enforcement work
• in the United States is carried out by the
• Sheriffs departments.

• In 2000, the nation had 3,070 sheriffs
  departments,
• employing 293,823 full-time personnel.

continued on next slide
37
Characteristics of Sheriffs Personnel
38
County Law Enforcement Functions

• County sheriff and department personnel
• perform many functions
• Investigating crimes.
• Supervising sentenced offenders.
• Enforcing criminal and traffic laws.
• Serving summons, warrants, and writs.
• Providing courtroom security.
• Transporting prisoners.
• Operating a county jail.

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Politics and County Law Enforcement

• Most sheriffs are directly elected and depend
• on an elected board of county commissioners
• or supervisors for funding.

• Sheriffs generally have a freer hand in
• running their agencies than do police chiefs.

40
State Law Enforcement

• State law enforcement agencies provide
• criminal and traffic law enforcement, and
• other services particular to the needs of that
• state government.

• In 2000, the 49 primary state law enforcement
  agencies (Hawaii has no state police agency) had
  87,028 employees

41
State Law Enforcement

• Each state has chosen one of two models for
• providing law enforcement services

State Police Model
Example Texas Rangers
Highway Patrol Model
Example California Highway Patrol
42
State Police ModelHighway Patrol Model

• State Police Model

A model of state law enforcement services in
which the agency and its officers have the
same law enforcement powers as local police, but
can exercise them anywhere within the state.
Highway Patrol Model
A model of state law enforcement services in
which officers focus on highway traffic safety,
enforcement of the states traffic laws, and the
investigation of accidents on the states roads,
highways, and on state property.
43
State Law Enforcement

• Both state police and highway patrol
• agencies perform the following services

• Help regulate commercial traffic.
• Conduct bomb investigations.
• Protect the governor and the capitol grounds and
  buildings.
• Administer computerized information networks for
  the state, which link up with the National Crime
  Information Center (NCIC) run by the FBI.

44
Federal Law Enforcement

• Among the best-known federal law
• enforcement agencies are
• FBI
• U.S. Secret Service
• Treasury Department
• Drug Enforcement Agency

• As of June 2002, federal agencies employed
• nationwide more than 93,000 full-time personnel
• authorized to make arrests and carry firearms.

45
Federal Law Enforcement

• Major differences between federal law
• enforcement and local and state police are
• Federal agencies operate across the nation.
• Federal agencies usually do not have peacekeeping
  duties.
• Some federal agencies have very narrow
  jurisdictions.

46
American Private Security

• Private security in the United States is a huge
• enterprise.
• It has been estimated that twice as many
• people work in private security as in public
• law enforcement.

47
American Private Security

• Private security employment is often
• categorized two ways

Contract Security
Example security guards hired for a college
football game
Proprietary Security
Example the security force for a corporations
manufacturing plants
48
Contract SecurityProprietary Security
Contract Security
Protective services that a private security firm
provides to people, agencies, and companies that
do not employ their own security personnel or
that need extra protection. Contract security
employees are not peace officers.
Proprietary Security
In-house protective services that a security
staff, which is not classified as sworn peace
officers, provide for the entity that employs
them.
49
Private Security Officers

• In 2002, there were more than one million private
  security officers. A private security officers
  duties vary and depend on the employers
  particular needs.
• Private security officers may protect
• Office buildings
• Parking garages
• Hospitals
• Armored vehicles

50
Reasons for Growth

• A number of factors have stimulated the
• phenomenal growth of private security since
• the 1970s
• Declining revenues for public policing.
• The private nature of crimes in the workplace.
  Companies can control and hide crimes by
  employees.
• Better control and attention to the problem,
  particularly within a business.
• Fewer constitutional limitations on the actions
  of private security officers.

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Issues Involving Private Security

• A number of unresolved problems and issues
• hamper the private security industry
• Legal status and authority derive from the rights
  of the employer. Private security has few
  constitutional limitations and can be held
  civilly liable.
• Public policing in a private capacity. Sworn
  officers often work for private companies,
  blurring the lines of responsibility and
  liability.

continued on next slide
52
Law Enforcement vs. Security

• Law Enforcement officers have limited authority.
• Law Enforcement officers cannot stop anyone.
• Miranda Warnings needed.
• Criminal Law

• Private security has more authority .
• Private security can interact with anyone at
  anytime.
• Miranda Warnings not needed.
• Civil Law

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End Chapter Five

• History and Structure of American Law Enforcement