NCJ Number
13648
Date Published
1974
Length
437 pages
Annotation
IDENTIFIES AND DISCUSSES FACTORS AFFECTING RELATIONS BETWEEN THE POLICE AND THE COMMUNITY.
Abstract
THE NATURE OF THE AMERICAN COMMUNITY IS DISCUSSED, ALONG WITH A HISTORY OF LAW ENFORCEMENT AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE IN THE UNITED STATES AND ITS EFFECT ON POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS. COMMENTS ARE MADE ON THE CONCEPT OF AUTHORITY, FOCUSING ON THE PROBLEMS GENERATED BY THE POLICE FUNCTIONING IN THE COMMUNITY AS A SYMBOL OF AUTHORITY. A DISCUSSION OF PAST AND PRESENT LAW ENFORCEMENT RELATIONSHIPS WITH MINORITY GROUPS COVERS THE PARALLELS AND THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE PROBLEMS ENCOUNTERED IN PAST INTERACTIONS WITH MINORITY GROUPS AND THE DIFFICULTIES THAT EXIST TODAY, ESPECIALLY WITH BLACKS, MEXICAN AMERICANS, AND STUDENT GROUPS. HIGHLIGHTS ARE PRESENTED OF THE DYNAMIC PROCESSES OF POLITICAL INFLUENCE AND COMMUNITY DECISION-MAKING AND THEIR EFFECTS ON THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM. CONSIDERABLE ATTENTION IS GIVEN TO THE HUMAN ELEMENTS INVOLVED IN POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS, SUCH AS ATTITUDES, PERCEPTIONS, AND FEELINGS. PRACTICAL APPLICATION OF CONCEPTS OF POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS ARE SUGGESTED, WITH EMPHASIS ON THE ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE OF POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS UNITS AND PROCEDURES FOR THE EFFECTIVE OPERATION OF SUCH UNITS. A SUMMARY OF MANY OF THE MAJOR PROBLEMS FACING THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM AND THE POLICE IN THEIR INTERACTIONS WITH THE COMMUNITY IS INCLUDED, ALONG WITH SUGGESTIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS FOR SOLVING THESE PROBLEMS. AN EXTENSIVE SUPPLEMENTAL BIBLIOGRAPHY IS PROVIDED AT THE END OF THE BOOK. (AUTHOR ABSTRACT MODIFIED)