Police

:''For the band, see The Police. For the Polish town, see Police, Poland.'' [[Image:police.car.1.arp.750pix.jpg|thumb|right|250px| A car of the Devon and Cornwall Constabulary, England]] Police forces are government organisations charged with the responsibility of maintaining law and order. The word comes from the French language, and less directly from the Greek language ''politeia'', referring to government or administration; the word ''police'' was coined in France in the 18th century. The police may also be known as a constabulary, after constables, who were an early manifestation of police officers. Police is one of the Law enforcement agency (LEA). ==Introduction== [[Image:StreifenwagenSaarPolizei.JPG|thumb|right|250px|A police car of the Saarland Police, Germany]] In most Western legal systems, the major role of the police is to discourage and investigate crimes, with particular emphases on crime against persons or property and the maintenance of public order, and if able to apprehend suspected perpetrator(s), to detain them, and inform the appropriate authorities. See criminal law. Police are often used as an emergency service and may provide a public safety function at large gatherings, as well as in emergencies, Emergency preparedness, and search and rescue situations. To provide a prompt response in emergencies, the police often coordinate their operations with firefighting and emergency medical services. In many countries there is a common emergency service number that allows the police, firefighters or medical services to be summoned to an emergency. Police are also responsible for reporting minor offences by issuing Citation (police) which typically may result in the imposition of fines, particularly for violations of traffic law. Police sometimes involve themselves in the maintenance of public order, even where no legal transgressions have occurred -- for example, in some Australian jurisdictions, people who are drunk and causing a public nuisance may be removed to a "drying-out centre" until they recover from the effects of the alcohol. ==History== In 1663, London hired watchmen to guard the streets at night, augmenting the force of unpaid constables, as the first paid law enforcement body. The ineffectiveness of this method led to the world's first organized police force in 1829 with the founding of the London Metropolitan Police Service by Sir Robert Peel. In 1845 the United States� first full-time organized police force was formed in New York City Police Department; the concepts emphasized by Peel in London were an influence on its creation. [http://www.historychannel.com/thcsearch/thc_resourcedetail.do?encyc_id=219522] ==Multiple levels of police agencies== In many countries, particularly those with a federal system of government, there may be several police or police-like organisations, each serving different levels of government and enforcing different subsets of the applicable law. === The United States of America === [[Image:Md state trooper.jpg|thumb|250px|right|A police car of the Maryland State Police, United States]] In the United States, there are several levels of policing and law enforcement services, federal police, state police, special-purpose district police (parks, schools, housing, transit, etc), county police (sheriffs, constables, and some county police agencies), and local police. There are thousands of separate police forces. Local policing is usually conducted by the police departments at the county, city, township or village level and may range from one person offices (sometimes still called the town marshal) to the 40,000 men and women of the New York City Police Department. County sheriffs, county police, state police, and highway patrols enforce laws in their particular jurisdictions and are usually the only police in unincorporated areas beyond the jurisdiction of the cities. They also assist the local police with investigations and may operate county jails. Special district police tend to be security police forces with little or no off-site authority. One exception however is the Los Angeles School Police Department, which with a deployment of 525 sworn and non-sworn personnel covers 708 square miles from five police divisions. [[Image:coppellpolice.jpg|thumb|250px|left|A police Sport utility vehicle used by the Coppell, Texas police force]] Federal police fall into two broad categories: *Investigative agencies (such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the United States Marshals Service, the Drug Enforcement Administration and the United States Secret Service); and *uniformed security police agencies (such as the United States Federal Protective Service, U.S. Mint Police, United States Park Police and United States Border Patrol). [[Image:2005_inaugural_0002.jpg|thumb|250px|right| U.S. Park Police officers standing by during the 2005 Inauguration]] Both types operate at the highest level and are endowed with police or quasi-police roles. The investigative agencies have nationwide jurisdiction, while the uniformed agencies tend to have rather limited territorial jurisdictions. The FBI has the most general investigative powers, while the other federal agencies are highly specialized. All federal agencies are limited by the U.S. Constitution to investigating only matters that are explicitly within the power of the federal government, like interstate commerce. But because ''everything'' in the U.S. affects interstate commerce nowadays, federal investigative powers are in practice very broad. Because of all this complexity, at a crime or disaster scene affecting large numbers of people, there will be many different police agencies involved. Usually the highest local agency, or the highest federal law enforcement agency (the FBI), if a federal law was involved, will take command in such confusing situations, as depicted in films like ''The Negotiator'' or ''Die Hard'. === Canada === In Canada, there are three levels of police forces: municipal, provincial, and federal. Constitutionally, law enforcement is a provincial responsibility, although most urban areas have been given the authority to maintain their own police forces. Many municipalities contract out their law enforcement to the provincial authorities, and all but three provinces in turn contract out their law enforcement responsibilities to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the federal force, which therefore is the only police force in the world to service three distinct levels. Ontario, Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador maintain their own provincial police forces. Smaller Canadian Cities often contract police service from the RCMP, while larger cities maintain their own force. === France === ''See article Police in France'' In France, there are two separate national police agencies, with overlapping but different jurisdiction: * the French National Police in the towns; * the French Gendarmerie (military police) in the country, villages and small towns. A similar diffusion exists, or has existed, in several other countries following the French system. Additionally, French municipalities may have a local police called the ''police municipale'', ''garde municipale'' or ''garde champetre'', with restricted powers: they can only enforce the municipal by-laws (amongst which those related to the road circulation) and participate in prevention actions (survey, evacuation of buildings, protection against accidents, etc.). These personnel may or may not be allowed to bear firearms. Note that in French, the term "''police''" does not only refers to the forces, but also to the general concept of "maintenance of law and order" (policing). There are two types of ''police'' in this general sense: * administrative police (''police administrative''): preventative actions (patrols, signalizing accident areas, overpowering a violent person, taking care of a lost or abandoned child, etc.); * judicial police (''police judiciaire''): noticing infringements of the law, searching for the proofs and for the authors of the crime, investigation, and full powers of arrest. Thus, the mayor has the administrative police power on the town (i.e. he/she can order the police forces to enforce the municipal by-laws), the judge has the power of police on the court (i.e. he/she can have people who disrupt the proceedings expelled from the court room). Until 1984, the National Police was involved in the prehospital care and Casualty movement (''Police secours''). The prehospital care is now performed by firemen; however, mountain rescue is performed by the Gendarmerie (PGHM, ''peloton de gendarmerie de haute montagne'') and the CRS (''Compagnies r�publicaines de s�curit�'', National Police's Republican Security Company). Some other countries follow this model and have separate police agencies with the same role but different jurisdictions. ===Interpol=== Most countries are members of the International Criminal Police Organization - Interpol, established to detect and fight trans-national crime and provide for international co-operation and coordination of other police activities, such as notifying relatives of the death of foreign nationals. Interpol does not conduct enquiries nor arrests by itself, but only serves as a central point for information on crime, suspects and criminals. Political crimes are excluded from its competencies. == Police armament and equipment == ===Generally=== In many jurisdictions, police officers carry firearms in the normal course of their duties. Police often have specialist units for handling armed offenders, and similar dangerous situations, and can often, in extreme circumstances, call on the military, sometimes including special forces like the Special Air Service. They can also be equipped with non-lethal force (more accurately known as "less than lethal" or "less-lethal") weaponry, particularly for riot control. Non-lethal weapons include club (weapon)s, shields, riot control agents, rubber bullets and stun guns. The use of firearms or deadly force is typically a last resort only to be used when necessary to save human life, although some jurisdictions allow its use against fleeing felons and escaped convicts. Police officers often also carry handcuffs to restrain suspects. Modern police forces make extensive use of radio communications equipment, carried both on the person and installed in vehicles, to coordinate their work, share information, and get help quickly. In recent years, vehicle-installed computers have enhanced the ability of police communications, enabling easier dispatching of calls, criminal background checks on persons of interest to be completed in a matter of seconds, and updating the officer's daily activity log and other required reports on a real-time basis. Other common pieces of police equipment include flashlights, whistles, and, most importantly, notebooks and "ticketbooks" or summons. ===In specific countries=== Finland_police_van_(here_with_the_text_in_Finland-Swedish).">Image:Finnish police car.jpg|thumb|250px|right|Finland police van (here with the text in Finland-Swedish). Police in the United States usually carry a pistol (Glocks and Sig P239s are the most common) and an impact weapon, a baton also known as a "nightstick". Most large police departments have elite SWAT units which are called in to handle situations which require greater force, such as hostage situations or building raids. Some departments also use nonlethal weapons like Mace (spray), pepper spray, electroshock guns, and Flexible baton round rifles. Some police departments allow their officers to carry shotguns or assault rifles in their vehicles for additional firepower. To efficiently cover the urban sprawling layout of the typical American city, American police officers usually patrol in pairs called "units," and ride in specialized cars (such as the Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor) called "cruisers", "patrol cars", or "prowl cars", or in the New York City Police Department "RMPs" (Radio Mobile Patrol). High-speed car chases are common in certain areas of the United States, so police officers are usually trained in high-speed driving techniques and the PIT maneuver. Horses are still used, mainly in crowd control situations but in remote areas occasionally for patrol or search and rescue. In the United Kingdom and some other countries of the British police tradition, the police are not normally issued firearms, but are issued other weapons (truncheons, batons, pepper spray, CS gas etc.), although some officers may be issued firearms in special situations. This originates from the formation of the Metropolitan Police in the 19th Century, when police were not armed, partly to counter public fears and objections concerning armed enforcers. However, the Ministry of Defence Police, Civil Nuclear Constabulary and Police Service of Northern Ireland (formerly known as Royal Ulster Constabulary) are issued firearms as a matter of routine. Every force can also call upon armed response units in a matter of minutes, and certain specialist squads, such as the Flying Squad, Special Branch, Diplomatic Protection Group, Royalty Protection Branch, and officers protecting airports and government buildings, are routinely armed. The archetypal British "bobbie" walked his beat alone. Apart from rapid response units, motor vehicles were rarely used except in rural districts (and even there bicycles were more common). However, in the last few decades the police have become increasingly motorised and it is now rare to see an officer on foot patrol except in city or town centres, and then rarely alone. Patrol cars, known as panda cars (or sometimes jam sandwiches), are in use everywhere and may be crewed by one or two officers. Except for rapid response and traffic patrol vehicles, they are generally smaller and less powerful than American vehicles. The Republic of Ireland has an unarmed police force, An Garda S�och�na, although they are all trained to use firearms and all detectives and special units carry them. == Restrictions upon the power of the police == In order for police officers to do their job well, they are vested by the state with a monopoly in the use of certain powers. These include the powers to arrest, search, seize, and interrogate; and if necessary, to kill. In nations with democratic systems and the rule of law, the law of criminal procedure has been developed to regulate officers' discretion, so that they do not exercise their vast powers arbitrarily and ruin the lives of innocent people. [[Image:2004_509_7.jpg|thumb|250px|right|Generally speaking police/law enforcement officers in the United States can stop (see Terry stop) and detain a person(s) when they have probable cause to suspect that the person(s) have committed a crime, or were about to commit a crime, and incident to such a stop can search the detained person(s) for reasons of 'officer safety' as well as public safety. This juvenille, in the District of Columbia, was released shortly after this image was made after Montgomery County (Maryland) and D.C. police determined he was an unwitting passenger in a stolen vehicle.]] In American criminal procedure, the most famous case is ''Miranda v. Arizona'' which led to the widespread use of Miranda warnings. American police are also prohibited from holding criminal suspects for more than an unreasonable time (usually two days) before arraignment, using torture to extract confessions, using excessive force to effect an arrest, and searching suspects' bodies or their homes without a warrant obtained upon a showing of probable cause. There are exceptions for exigent circumstances such as the need to disarm a suspect who is resisting arrest. The Posse Comitatus Act prevents the use of the U.S. military for police activity, giving added importance to police SWAT units. British police officers are governed by similar rules, particularly those introduced under the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984, but generally have greater powers. They may, for example, legally search any suspect who has been arrested, or their vehicles, home or business premises, without a warrant, and may seize anything they find in a search as evidence. Unlike the system in many countries, a British police officer's rank has no bearing on his or her powers - all police powers are derived from the "office of constable" into which every police officer has been sworn and the newest probationary constable (or part-time volunteer Special Constabulary) has exactly the same powers as the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis, Britain's most senior police officer. == Difficult issues == Some police organizations, especially in multi-racial or multi-ethnic areas, are faced with the perception that racial profiling is occurring. Police organizations also must sometimes deal with the issue of police corruption which is often abetted by a code of silence that encourages unquestioning loyalty to one's comrades over the cause of justice. In the US, this is accomplished by having an independent or semi-independent organization investigate such as the FBI, internal affairs, or the United States Department of Justice. Finally, in many places, the social status and pay of police is now leading to major problems with recruitment and morale. Critics, especially those mindful of the potential for state tyranny, (see "police state"), argue that police organizations are a means by which the state implements its Monopoly on the legitimate use of physical force. Police forces also find themselves under criticism for their use of force, particularly deadly force when a police officer of one race kills a suspect of another race. In the United States, such events routinely spark protests and accusations of racism against police. For more information on extreme forms and various views of policing, see secret police, police state, corporate police state, thought police, and police brutality. == Policing structures == Most police forces contain subgroups whose job it is to investigate particular types of crime. In most Western police forces, perhaps the most significant division is between "uniformed" police and detectives. Uniformed police, as the name suggests, wear uniforms, and their jobs involve overt policing operations, traffic control, and more active crime response and prevention. Detectives, by contrast, wear 'business attire' when their job is to more passively investigate crimes, usually on a longer-term basis. There are also "plainclothes" officers, who are required to dress in more casual attire for purposes of blending in better. In some cases, police are assigned to work "undercover", where they do not identify themselves as police, sometimes for long periods, to investigate crimes, particularly organized crime, unsolvable by other means. This type of policing shares much with espionage. Specialized groups exist within the branches either for dealing with particular types of crime (for instance, traffic policing, murder, or fraud) or because of particular specialised skills they have (for instance, diving, operating helicopters, bomb squad, and so on). Most larger jurisdictions also retain specially-trained quasi-military squads armed with small arms for the purposes of dealing with particularly violent situations. These are sometimes called SWAT (Special Weapons And Tactics) teams. == Related articles == *List of Law Enforcement Agencies ===Police roles=== *Auxiliary police *Bailiff *Civil police *Constable *County police *Cybercop *Detective *Federal police *Fire police *Gendarmerie *Highway patrol *Marshal *Military police *Mounted police *National police *Park ranger *Police Explorers *Riot police *Security police *Secret police *Sheriff *Special police *State police *Tipstave *Transit police *Water police === Ethical issues related to police === * Police brutality * Racial profiling * Speed traps * Sting operations ===Related concepts=== * Crime * Crimestoppers * Courts * Forensics * Law * Police station * Posse comitatus * Wanted poster === Notable historical police personalities === * Joe Arpaio * Alphonse Bertillon * Grover Cleveland * James E. Davis * Wyatt Earp * Izzy Einstein * Aida D. Fariscal * Daniel Faulkner * Louis Freeh * Mark Fuhrman * Pat Garrett * Darryl F. Gates * Doc Holliday * J. Edgar Hoover * Elisha Keeney * Ray Kelly * Bernard Kerik * Bat Masterson * Charles Moose * Eliot Ness * Padikkal * Robert Peel * Allan Pinkerton * Jeffrey Postell * Theodore Roosevelt * Frank Serpico * Sam Steele * David Toma * John Varrone * Eug�ne Fran�ois Vidocq * August Vollmer * Juan Vucetich * Joseph Wambaugh ''For fictional accounts of police work, see: Crime fiction.'' === Notable police officers better known in other walks of life === * Nicola Calipari, Italian intelligence officer (Polizia di Stato) * Jessie Camacho, American contestant on ''Survivor: Africa'' (Altamonte Springs Police Department/Orange County Sheriff's Office) * Geoff Capes, British strongman (Metropolitan Police) * John Reginald Christie, British serial killer (Metropolitan Police War Reserve) * Bill Clark, American screenwriter and producer of ''NYPD Blue'' (New York City Police Department) * Lynn \"Buck\" Compton, American army officer featured in ''Band of Brothers'' (Los Angeles Police Department) * Rico Constantino, American wrestler (Las Vegas Police Department) * Lisa Dalton, American actress and drama teacher (Englewood Police Department) * Jimmie Davis, singer and Governor of Louisiana (Shreveport Police Department) * Christopher Dean, British ice dancing (Nottinghamshire Police) * Dave Dee, British singer (Metropolitan Police) * Reed Diamond, American actor (Los Angeles Police Department) * John DiResta, American comedian and actor (New York City Transit Police/New York City Police Department) * Se�n Doherty, Irish politician (Garda S�och�na) * Dennis Farina, American actor (Chicago Police Department) * Robert Emmett Fitzsimmons, American actor (New York City Police Department) * Errol Flynn, Australian actor * Kam Fong Chun, American actor (Honolulu Police Department) * Don Galloway, American actor (San Bernardino Sheriff's Department Reserve) * Lucy Gannon, British screenwriter (Royal Military Police) * Deryck Guyler, British actor (Royal Air Force Police) * Rafael Hern�ndez, Spanish actor * Maralyn Hershey, American contestant on ''Survivor: The Australian Outback'' (DC Metropolitan Police Department) * Charlotte Hobrough, winner of British ''Survivor (UK version)'' * Robert Holmes, British screenwriter (Metropolitan Police) * Al Hoxie, American silent movie actor (Anaheim Police Department) * Reina Leone, American porn actress (San Francisco Sheriff's Department) * Walter Long, American actor (United States Army Military Police Corps) * Arthur McKenzie, British screenwriter (Northumbria Police) * Victor McLaglen, British actor (British Army Provost Marshal) * Eddie Money, American musician (New York City Police Department) * Dennis Nilsen, British serial killer (Metropolitan Police) * Sergio Oliva, Cuban-born American weightlifter and bodybuilder (Chicago Police Department) * Shaquille O'Neal, American basketball player (Los Angeles Port Police Reserve/Miami Beach Police Reserve) * George Orwell, British author (Burma Police) * John Powell, American discus thrower (San Jose Police Department) * Ray Reardon, British snooker player (Stoke-on-Trent City Police) * Phil Regan (singer), American tenor (New York City Police Department) * Nicholas Rhea, British novelist * Chuck Roberson, American stuntman (Culver City Police Department) * Gene Roddenberry, American producer of ''Star Trek'' (Los Angeles Police Department) * Talbot Rothwell, British screenwriter for the Carry On films * Sathyan, Indian actor (Kerala Police) * John Savident, British actor (Manchester City Police) * Kim Taylforth, British actress (Metropolitan Police) * Dan White, American murderer (San Francisco Police Department) == External links == *[http://www.pakrev.com Pakistan Police and Army] *[http://www.pakrev.com/forums Pakistan Police, Army, Navy, Air Force Forums] *[http://HavenWorks.com/law/enforcement Law Enforcement News] *[http://www.securitylinks.org/Law_Enforcement/index.html Law Enforcement Directory] Police officers Law enforcement hi:पुलिस ms:Polis simple:Police

Police

Moving comments placed on main page here: == This article is highly POV. == It has the POV of the police and of lawyers. For example, "critics" say that police are how the government uses its monopoly on force, but that police perform this function for government is an objective fact, and is therefore NPOV. The rest of the article is riddled with police jargon, which gives it its police POV. For example, "the major role of the police is to discourage and investigate crimes, and if able to apprehend suspected perpetrator(s), to detain them, and inform the appropriate authorities." It's POV in part because it places more emphasis on the possibility that the "suspected perpetrator(s)" might by GUILTY than it places on the possibility that they might be innocent. In Western societies, a court must decide on guilt after the arrest takes place. A NPOV wording would put equal emphasis on both possibilities. The police jargon used (ie "detain", "crime", "perpetrator") insinuates the POV that breaking the law is morally wrong, and enforcing the law is morally right. A more neutral description of their role might read ''"the major role of police is to forcibly capture anyone who has or may have acted in defiance of the law."'' Notice that in this wording, equal weight is given to both guilt and innocence, and the fact that what police do is violence is right out in the open, instead of masked by legalistic euphemisms, thus eliminating the POV that police violence is morally justified. By eliminating the use of the word crime, I remove the non-neutral connotation that breaking the law is morally wrong. Meanwhile, those views are not replaced by their opposites (crime is good and police violence is bad), which makes the description NPOV. ---- ''Oh, what a great topic! We should discuss famous police departments (Scotland Yard, NYPD, LAPD, others?), the history of police, the legal distinction(s) between military and police (and lacks thereof in some societies), what training police officers are typically required to have, comparison and contrast of policing systems, and police behavior...golly, the list goes on and on.'' Yeah, and policing is a lifetime study as a discipline, some of these issues should get their own subarticles so we don't swamp the incoming reader user:clarka ---- Have to agree, this is seriously POV. It makes no mention of the darker side of police forces like e.g. Gestapo or the Stasi and the misuse of power concomitant therewith. Moreover, it makes assumptions about a) the nature of property b) the constitution of order and c) the nature of legislative authority and its ultimate derivation. This needs to be seriously addressed or it should imo be flagged directly with a POV flag. User:Sjc 08:14, 9 Oct 2004 (UTC) :Well fix it. There's plenty that can be said about police brutality, the conservative nature of police forces, the disjunction between the actual effectiveness of additional policing and the propensity of people to vote for it, their use in political oppression, and so on and so forth. However, don't try and turn this into an Indymedia anti-police rant either. --User:Robert Merkel 09:16, 9 Oct 2004 (UTC) ::I don't think that was implicit in my tone or was my intention. However, this nevertheless does look like a disproportionately POV article. Fortunately the police lie a long way outside my real ambit of interest, except perhaps in so far as the activities of earlier police systems (e.g. Burleigh's system of spies and informers) are concerned, and I am dealing with those as I go along. I am more concerned that we can set up an article as unbalanced as this as an encyclopaedic entry, and I would implore someone who has a background in criminology to take a good long hard look at this topic and fix it. User:Sjc 14:38, 9 Oct 2004 (UTC) == Centralized vs Decentralized == Perhaps, it would be interesting for many readers if the article included some more elaboration on centralized vs decentralized police models. The ''Encyclopedia Americana'''s Police article has an excellent entry on this in the passage starting from: "The proliferation of small decentralized police forces in the United States has produced an almost chaotic overlap of police jurisdiction. On the other hand, this development provides a bulwark against the threat of police ever becoming a nationalized political force or a secret agency of domestic spies...". I cannot simply paste this and the following paragraphs from ''Americana'' into Wikipedia because it would violate the Copyright. But if someone with a better knowledge of the topic and better English than mine would write on that, the article might very well benefit. ------ Article fails to mention controversy over existence of police. --User:Daniel C. Boyer 18:27 Feb 2, 2003 (UTC) :The truth is a mighty hard thing to defend against, sir :) Subtlety is your friend. Bear in mind the intellectual limits of those who would lie. Your statement is not entirely true! Blatant force of truth will be fought and deleted, but don't underestimate the audience, and bear in mind that this is a two-way street. ---- Article fails to mention secret police. --User:Daniel C. Boyer 18:28 Feb 2, 2003 (UTC) ---- Can we list our favourite nicknames for the constabulary? * Pigs * Filth * Rozzers * Old Bill :*Fuzz --User:Daniel C. Boyer :*Boeuf -- French translation of German epithet: "Beef" :*Poulet -- French: "chicken" ::as in (in France): "what do you get when the cop shop burns down?" ::Ans: "Poulet Roulet" [anglicized transliteration: poo-lay roo-lay]== roast chicken :How's this ;) {| border="1" | I || ''Inoffensive'' or ''Informal'' |- | O || ''Offensive'' |- | C || ''Critical'' |+ Key |} * Cop (I) * Cop (I) ''British, from Cop +-er''. See Also, ACAB. * Bobby (I) ''British'' * Plod (O/C) ''British, usually offensive, from Enid Blyton's Noddy books. Can connote Inept.'' * Popo (I) ''American, probably from the PO letters on uniforms'' http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=popo See Also * Pig (C/O) ''Derogatory, probably related to fascism'' * Flatfoot (I) * Flic as in ''le flic'' * Fuzz (I) ''American, unknown origin, informal'' * Busies (I) ''British, inoffensive'' * Bluebottle (O) ''derived from Wasp, nickname for British Traffic Wardens?'' * Filth (C) ''British, maybe related to fascism (from earlier 'Nazi Filth'), or corruption'' * Old Bill (I) ''British, 1960's'' * Rozzer (O) * Tit Head (O) ''British, related to the helmet british beat officers wear'' * Peeler (I) ''Northern Irish'' * Boys in Blue (I) ''Complimentary, related to uniform'' * Finest (I) ''Suffixed against constabulory or region, Complimentary'' ---- ::yes, they're universally despised. ::Think about it: in the USA, at least, even among small children there is the notion of a "tattle tale". This is not something you want to be in this society. A cop's role is to inform upon his fellow man for money. Children are taught from an early age to despise the police... --User:Bagpuss ---- I think the main deficiency in this article reads more like a comparison of the US police with the UK police than a generalized article on police. I also found this factually questionable and highly British in POV, so I removed "particularly the United States". :"In many jurisdictions, particularly the United States, police officers carry guns in the normal course of their duties." The practice of police carrying firearms is hardly particular to the United States. --User:Daniel Quinlan 09:26 22 Jul 2003 (UTC) ---- Mr. Quinlan: Could you please explain the term "less-lethal" (either in the article or here [making clear why there it no need to explain it]? I think it may not be familiar to people. --User:Daniel C. Boyer 12:58 22 Jul 2003 (UTC) ---- No problem, "less-lethal" (also sometimes "less than lethal" although that term is somewhat confusing since it could be interpreted "non-lethal", but is meant to mean "not as lethal as a firearm") is the more recent term used to describe what was originally (and quite incorrectly) called "non-lethal" weapons. These weapons, while intended to be non-lethal, still pose a significant (if not great) risk of death or serious injury. For example, rubber bullets, projectile bean bags, and tear gas cannisters can hit someone in the wrong place (the eye or head) or be fired at too close in range and can result in death. Decapacitating chemicals and electric weapons ("taser" guns can cause more adverse reactions in some people (although I don't know of any deaths due to taser, I have seen a story about a miscarriage which you can interpret how you'd like). See also: * http://www.janes.com/security/conference/llw2003/speaker_info.shtml * http://www.taser.com/2000/Feb/SidHeal.htm (3 years ago, I think the term has grown to be more accepted since then) User:Daniel Quinlan 02:09 24 Jul 2003 (UTC) :Thank you. The term itself seems to be an unfortunate one, as it at first blush seems to weigh something which is really binary (either you're dead or you're not). But it is part of the terminology of the subject. --User:Daniel C. Boyer 15:07 24 Jul 2003 (UTC) I added some text to the non-lethal page about the other terms (perhaps could use some more information, or move them up to the beginning of the article as alternate words for the article). Maybe a redirect for less-lethal would be a good idea too. User:Daniel Quinlan 22:00 24 Jul 2003 (UTC) ---- Wouldn't a picture of a policeman be more appropriate than a helicopter?User:Lisiate 03:43, 28 Sep 2003 (UTC) : 100% agreement. I would suggest an "average"-ish sort of uniformed policeman (as opposed to a SWAT officer or detective). User:Daniel Quinlan 03:52, Sep 28, 2003 (UTC) ::How is a police officer pic more appropriate than a pic of some of the gear they routinely use? The article title is Police i.e the whole organisation, not just the people at the front end! By all means add a policeman pic (I don't have one) but please don't remove my helicopter pic.
::User:Arpingstone 07:36, 28 Sep 2003 (UTC) ::: Sorry, dude, we're less attached to the picture than you are! Police does not equal Helicopter. Not even close. User:Daniel Quinlan 07:50, Sep 28, 2003 (UTC) ::::Sorry, Daniel, I'm baffled by your attitude. Just read the title of the article. I merely put on a photo of an important piece of police apparatus used by police forces the world over! Seems totally relevant to the article title but remove it if you wish, I don't get into edit wars
::::User:82.32.24.68 08:05, 28 Sep 2003 (UTC) :::::Sorry, that last entry was mine. I forgot to log in.
:::::User:Arpingstone 08:08, 28 Sep 2003 (UTC) ---- Is Neighborhood Watch really a police service? User:Daniel Quinlan 23:31, Oct 4, 2003 (UTC) :No ... although they may be involved in routing information to and from members of an NW. --User:VampWillow 22:47, 2004 May 22 (UTC) ==History of policing?== The main page today states that the London police force was the first official police force. That begs for information about what came before that? What was policing like before 'official' police forces and what made it more 'official' than others. - User:Taxman 16:59, Sep 29, 2004 (UTC) Concur - need more on history, and better linking to related articles. Also a section on names for the police and the origins of these. User:Rd232 10:34, 26 Jan 2005 (UTC) == Reorganising long lists == I'm trying to sort out the long lists on this page somewhat. I agree that most, if not all of the things mentioned are relevant, but it's all somewhat undifferentiated and hard to follow at the moment. I've started by grouping the list of forces by country further into continents. If anyone doesn't think it's appropriate... that's what the revert thing's for. User:Pmcm 01:36, 17 Nov 2004 (UTC) Changed about some of the other long lists at the end too, mostly breaking them up into smaller sub-categories. A few terms didn't fit into any of these, and were lost along the way. If anyone's particularly attached to any of them, then please feel free to stuff them in somewhere appropriate. Not too fond of the list of notable police personnel, but not sure if it warrants a 'list of famous police personnel' page. Maybe a category? User:Pmcm 02:04, 17 Nov 2004 (UTC) == Pictures == How about fewer pictures of police vehicles and more pictures of actual police officers in various situations?User:AndyL 02:00, 19 Dec 2004 (UTC) :AndyL, I agree but it's not that easy. I put the the English police car pic on and I do have some pictures of the police. But I'm not putting them on because their faces show and I have no way of getting their permission. If I blur their faces, the pic looks really weird. Perhaps someone does have pics of police where their faces don't show clearly. - User:Arpingstone 10:17, 19 Dec 2004 (UTC) == Police in Media section? == How about a "Police in the Media" section? It could depict how police forces are depicted in shows and movies and could references popular shows such as COPS. It could also outline various police stereotypes... -User:BrandonR 07:00, Jan 14, 2005 (UTC) I generally take offense to the paragraph relating to "cop-killers". This makes it seem as if all US police officers are ignorant monsters who would simply kill a suspect. ---- Uh, if you were actually familiar with American law enforcement, with its history, and the history of litigation against law enforcement, you would realize that the rule is quite common nationwide. The basic problem is that since violent crime became epidemic in the U.S. along with the war on drugs in the 1980s, cops have become extremely trigger-happy and the courts have generally deferred to their discretion. The basic idea is that the burden is on suspects to show their peaceful intent. I know some people who work in healthcare who treat people shot up by cops all the time, because the cops misinterpreted some careless (but innocent) motion. Try reading cases like Lyons v. Los Angeles (1983) sometime to get an idea of the problem. --User:Coolcaesar 00:41, 4 Mar 2005 (UTC) ==Term "sworn"== Can someone provide a definition of "swon" and "un-sworn" in reference to different categories of police personnel? Thanks ~ User:Dpr 08:32, 14 Jun 2005 (UTC) Sworn officers are those who have gone through the police academy training and than take an oath to uphold the law. Unsworn or more usually "civilian" employees undertake other police jobs like dispatch, maintenance, secretarial duties and are not trained in policing or working under oath. User:Rmhermen 02:25, Jun 15, 2005 (UTC)

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Words begining with Police:

Police
Police
Police,_Poland
Police,_Poland
Police-man
Police-men
Police-state
Police-woman
Police-women
Police13
Policeman
Policemen
Policenauts
PoliceState.ogg
Policeware
Policewoman
Policewomen
Police_(P�litz)
Police_/_Szczecin
Police_Academy
Police_Academy
Police_Academy_(movie)
Police_Academy_2:_Their_First_Assignment
Police_Academy_5:_Assignment_Miami_Beach
Police_action
Police_action
Police_ambulance
Police_and_Judicial_Co-operation_in_Criminal_Matters
Police_and_Judicial_Co-operation_in_Criminal_Matters
Police_and_Security_Service
Police_Athletic_League
Police_Athletic_League
Police_Authority
Police_authority
Police_blimp
Police_board
Police_box
Police_box
Police_Brutality
Police_brutality
Police_brutality
Police_Cadet_'84
Police_call_box
Police_car
Police_car
Police_car_blue
Police_chief
Police_Commissioner
Police_commissioner
Police_Commissioner_of_Mumbai
Police_Commissioner_of_the_City_of_New_York
Police_Community_Support_Officer
Police_community_support_officer
Police_Constable
Police_corruption
Police_cruiser
Police_department
Police_Dependants_Trust
Police_detective
Police_diving
Police_Division
Police_division
Police_dog
Police_dog
Police_dogs
Police_Emergency_Wagon
Police_encounter
Police_Explorers
Police_F.C.
Police_force
Police_forces_of_the_United_Kingdom
Police_Foundation
Police_fraud
Police_Gazette
Police_Headquarters
Police_helicopter
Police_inspector
Police_in_China
Police_in_France
Police_in_Macau
Police_in_mainland_China
Police_in_Taiwan
Police_in_taiwan
Police_in_the_People's_Republic_of_China
Police_K-9
Police_K-9_Unit
Police_K9
Police_lineup
Police_man
Police_Medal_of_Valour
Police_m�l�e_weapons
Police_men
Police_Motto
Police_mugshot
Police_Nationale
Police_nationale
Police_National_Computer
Police_Officer
Police_officer
Police_officers
Police_officers
Police_officers_by_nationality
Police_of_Italy
Police_of_Italy
Police_operations_in_the_United_Kingdom
Police_Oppression
Police_oppression
Police_oppression
Police_Plane
Police_plane
Police_Power
Police_power
Police_Procedural
Police_procedural
Police_procedure
Police_prosecutor
Police_Quest
Police_Quest
Police_records
Police_riot
Police_Service_Northern_Ireland
Police_Service_of_Northern_Ireland
Police_Service_of_Northern_Ireland_FC
Police_Squad
Police_Squad!
Police_state
Police_state
Police_states
Police_station
Police_stations
Police_Story
Police_Story_(movie)
Police_Story_3
Police_SUV
Police_Task_Force
Police_Truck
Police_weapons
Police_Woman
Police_Woman
Police_women