A Federal Policing Reform in the United States

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Oversight of the Conduct of the Police by the Federal Government
Screening the police for Implicit Aggression and Racial Bias
Focussing on Collaborative Approach
Gathering of Statistics on Police-Involved Fatalities and Interrogations
Conclusion
References

Introduction

Policing practices should promote equitable justice and be supported by evidence for the benefit of society. The basis of these procedures should be on the principle of acknowledgment and the necessity of human rights in upholding an optimistic connection between the law and social enforcement. Nevertheless, some police agencies have a track record of policing inequitably, alienating and intentionally minority communities and harming low-income (Brooks, 2021). Several police departments rely on practices with a questionable track history of lowering crime while alienating populations. The creation of effective and fair policing practices entails various reforms, such as increasing the federal government’s oversight of the conduct of the police.

Oversight of the Conduct of the Police by the Federal Government

The Department of Justice’s Office of Civil Rights should be more active in establishing national standards for police conduct. In addition to that, ensuring compliance with those norms by tying participation in national task forces to the adoption of certain guidelines, training, and policies, as well as through the funding penalties of the state (Schwartz & Jahn, 2020). The federal government has got the right to ensure that no police violate the rights of the citizens they swore to protect. Before their misconduct escalates to the level of systematic civil rights violations, the US government should ensure that police officers are adequately trained and monitored by police agencies. When the government conducts its oversight role in an effective manner, in the near future, there are likely to be reduced instances of brutality among people of color.

Screening the police for Implicit Aggression and Racial Bias

Legislation should be passed by the state legislature in a manner that the serving police officers be subjected to mandatory testing on racial bias. This kind of testing entails testing in decision-making when it comes to commands in their line of duty. Provision of a clear strategy for taking a police’s level of racial prejudice into account during law enforcement licensure, recruiting, performance reviews, and judgments regarding whether an officer should be assigned to people of color. Psychological testing should be mandatory for applicants for officer employment to screen out those who have a tendency for hostility and violence (Smith Lee & Robinson, 2019). Furthermore, regular monitoring and screening should be promoted. Early warning systems for identifying patterns of behavior, including allegations lodged against personal or the officers’ troubles, including divorce, should be used by police agencies to identify possible vulnerabilities for both the officer and the department. The fundamental goal of such systems is to give counseling to police in order to lessen their danger and the risk to citizens and communities.

Focussing on Collaborative Approach

The police should rely upon collaborative techniques that recognize the dignity of persons in the community, emphasizing problem-solving, and are typically more centered on building trust in the community. Using environmental and structural techniques to minimize crime, like providing lighting to hotspot areas, protecting derelict houses, and forming partnerships with local residents to handle specific crimes, are instances of tactics. Improved police-civilian contacts through the stop, frisk, and finally questioning, and summonses, minor arrests, and fines for violations that are less severe should be forbidden.

Gathering of Statistics on Police-Involved Fatalities and Interrogations

There is a need to comprehend the nature and the scope of the problem is required to formulate sensible regulations and rules to deal with law enforcement’s excessive and illegal utilization of force. In the United States, various states, as well as local administrators, will be expected by the federal government to report incidences of police brutality by providing detailed information on such occurrences. The Death in Custody Reporting Act of 2013 was approved by Congress on December 11, 2014, requiring states to report such deaths and giving the United States attorney general the authority to restrict federal legislation financing to states that do not comply by up to 10% (Lo, 2021). Governments would be responsible for the submission of data on the victim’s demographics, when and where the incident took place, and the police unit that was involved. Additionally, the state should as well provide a brief narrative of the circumstances surrounding the demise of the victim. The attorney general would then be obligated to investigate this data to identify measures through which such data might be used to lessen the frequency of such tragedies.

Conclusion

Additionally, accountability should also be promoted through the use of video recording. Legislators should make it mandatory to electronically recording of police interrogations” during the period an individual who is reasonable in the subject’s situation would believe to be in custody and a law enforcement officer’s questioning is likely to elicit responses that are incriminating (Ray, 2020). When video recording is used, the cameras should catch both the individual and the interrogator under questioning. Body cameras should be worn by police officers with adequate privacy precautions in place, such as laws requiring the cameras to be switched on and preventing recording manipulation.

References

Brooks, Rosa. (2021). Tangled Up in Blue: Policing the American City: Penguin.

Lo, Kenny(2021).How To Address Concerns About Data on Deaths in Custody.Congress and States Can Take a Critical First Step Toward Police Accountability.

Ray, Rashawn (2020). “How Should We Enhance Police Accountability in the United States?” The Brookings Institution.

Schwartz, G. L., & Jahn, J. L. (2020). Mapping fatal police violence across US metropolitan areas: Overall rates and racial/ethnic inequities, 2013-2017. PloS one, 15(6), e0229686.

Smith Lee, J. R., & Robinson, M. A. (2019). “That’s my number one fear in life. It’s the police”: Examining young black men’s exposures to trauma and loss resulting from police violence and police killings.Journal of Black Psychology, 45(3), 143-184.

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