Ethics in the Police Service Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Ethics in the Police Service - Assignment Example The interview conducted involved a male and a female officer from Texas, but these two officers do not know each other and each was not informed of the identity of the other interviewee. They preferred not to have their names mentioned to preserve the confidentiality of their views. Both officers are in their middle ages; the male officer is 38 years old and has served for seven years, whereas the female officer is already 42, and has served for 11 years. Both officers expressed devotion to their sworn profession. The interview was conducted online via Skype, thus ensuring a relaxed and free atmosphere with the interviewees situated at the comfort of their homes. However, there were some limitations due to the lack of personal contact of the interviewer with the two law enforcers. To note, the interviewer was not able to note down gestures and facial expressions to fully grasp the sincerity of the interviewees. Nevertheless, the eagerness of the interviewees in answering the question s helped a lot to achieve the primary goals of the interview. The interviewees responded to the following main questions: 1. Why are ethics and character so important in the field of law enforcement? 2. Do you feel that police are more ethical today, or were they more ethical ten years ago? 3. Why do police officers become involved in misconduct? ... Why are ethics and character so important in the field of law enforcement? 2. Do you feel that police are more ethical today, or were they more ethical ten years ago? 3. Why do police officers become involved in misconduct? 4. Do you feel that there is enough training offered in ethics at the police academy level? If not, why is that? .Should ethics training be offered as an on-going process for law enforcement officers? 6. Do you feel that education and/or training in ethics would reduce incidents of police corruption? In addition to the questions provided above, some follow up questions were asked to help clarify thoughts of the respondents. Such questions are labeled as FQs. The responses of the male interviewee are labeled as Respondent 1 (R1), and the responses of the female interviewee are labeled as Respondent 2 (R2) .The interview with the respondents lasted for less than 15 minutes each, and the recorded answers were transcribed in this paper. Q1. Why are ethics and characte r so important in the field of law enforcement? R1: ethics and character are very important in our profession. We, law officers, follow some ethics and rules like any other citizen but we are more obliged to show others what’s right and what’s wrong, we serve as role models. Part of the requirements in being police is to be a good citizen of this country, respect the law, show concern for the people, and always bring pride to that uniform you’re wearing each day. R2: Ethics and character are basic requirements in being police officers to ensure that they can be trusted to serve the people without self-interest and greed. An aspiring police officer needs to possess desirable character and traits that are aligned to the code of ethics and mission of the