Ethics Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Ethics - Case Study Example The police officers of every nation are empowered to ensure the safety of their communities and to arrest people that they suspect of being criminals. This level of power, for some officers, gives them the facility to abuse the authority accorded them by enaging in corrupt activities. The issue of ensuring police accountability is probably one of the hardest to achieve for police leaders (Miller, 2010). This is because police officers are in the first place empowered to use coercive tactics when enforcing the law. The law enforcement profession, in contrast to other proffesions, has numerous opportunities for acts of corruption. Corrupt acts in the police profession include taking bribes, giving false witness against a suspect, or pilfering itmes from a scene of crime. There have also been many cases in the past of police officers misusing physically battering suspects to get quick albeit wrong confessions. Such acts are then hidden by coworkers. These are just some of the problems t hat are faced by police leaders. The challenges that many police organizations face at present could be categorized into three groups; as administrative, operational, and political issues (Kaariainen, Lintonen, Laitinen and Pollock, 2008). Operational challenges are basically focused on order maintenance and crime control police operations. These operations include controlling drug-trafficking, prosecuting organized crime, and gangs, violent crime, and controlling social disorder. It is in these areas where most corrupt practices such as the use of brutality and bribe taking are prevalent. Administrative challenges have to do with allocating resources, engineering the transfer of officers, defining service quality, and handling daily administrative issues. Police leaders have in the past dealt with challenges in the officially prescribed manner. This can affect the induction of new regulations that will positively affect the police force. The hierarchical structure which stipulates that all direction flows from the top down can actually stifle any efforts of ordinary officers to improve their departments. Political challenges have to do with being affected by the community’s political environment. There have been many instances in the past when police actions were compromised by the influence of owerful political players who interfered criminal investigations. Such realities put a lot of pressure on police leaders because they know that they can be adversely affected by refusing to accede to the requests of powerful politicians operating within their jurisdictions. Reasons why these Challenges Need to be Addressed in Light of the Organization’s Mission, Values and Culture Police corruption basically refers to any acts that contravene the very rules that police officers are expected to uphold. Police officers, like all other members of communities, have basic needs and wants. Some police officers simply enter the force in order to earn a good livi ng whle serving their communities. Morever, their idealistic views of what is right and what ois wrong might be negatively affected once they are exposed to the world of crime and discover that criminals actually make more money than they do. Once this point is reached, it takes an extremely dedicated officer to refuse the temptation of large bribes in order to allow criminal elements in the society to