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
11-2
3. A Definition of Discretion
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.
11-3
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
11-4
5. Potential Abuse Of Discretion
Discrimination
Denial of Due Process
Systematic Underenforcement of the Law
Poor Personnel Management
Inconsistent Policy
11-5
6. Proper Exercise of Discretion
The Use of Good Judgment
Efficient Use of Scare Police Resources
Individualized Justice
Sound Public Policy
11-6
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
11-8
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
11-9
10. Other Factors Influencing
Discretionary Decisions
Organizational Factors
Official Department policy
Informal organizational culture
Social and Political Factors
Local Political Culture
11-10
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
11-11
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.
11-12
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
11-13
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.
11-14
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.
11-15
16. Codifying Rules: The Standard
Operation Procedure (SOP) Manual
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
11-16
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
11-17
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
11-18
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
11-19