Title: Who rules the police?
Description: Impact of police political activism on urban political environments, with particular emphasis from the perspective of civil accountability and control. The escalation of conflict and violence during the past decade has placed an awesome burden upon the nation's police authorities. The police are the most visible part of the law enforcement process, a position which places them between "law and order" groups making unrealistic demands, and minorities and dissenters often openly hostile. As a result, the police have organized on behalf of their own particular needs and interests. Drawing on a range of seventeen readings, the editor examines the implications of this new police activism, probing the realities of the police officer's job in the context of community affairs. His central interest is in assessing police behavior from the perspective of civil accountability and control. Society's standards for police behavior are analyzed in readings which discuss the sources of police control: civilian review, police internal review, the mayor and city council, prosecutors, and the judiciary. One section explores the special problems involved in police discretion as well as the police interface with courts and prosecutors. Abuse of discretionary power is characterized in the readings dealing with the Chicago riots during the 1968 Democratic National Convention and police corruption in New York City, as revealed by the Knapp Commission's investigation. Finally, four articles delve into the nature of political contention between civil authority and organized police groups and the impact of the police on urban political environments. Three appendices outline key actions concerning civil review and accountability, the law and order issue, and police-community relations in three major cities: New York City, Philadelphia and Chicago.
Subjects: Police
Places: United States