The Police Are Primarily Crime Fighters

Published Date: 02 Nov 2017

‘Anyone attempting to construct a workable definition for the police role will typically come away with…a new found appreciation for the intricacies of police work.’ (Goldstein, 1977:p.21) As Goldstein states, police role is very difficult to define and is also ‘extremely diverse, ambiguous and dynamic.’ (Dempsey and Forst, 2011:p.126) Definitions of policing tend to focus on the different aspects of what roles in general the service performs; the traditional ‘common sense’ role is primarily law enforcement, however, this is highly influenced by the media. (Rowe, 2008) ‘A recurrent chestnut of debate about the police role has been whether the police are best considered as a force, with the primary function of enforcing the criminal law, or as a service, providing balm for a sea of social troubles.’ (Reiner, 1992:p.139) For Reiner, it is much more complex than this; he believes that the police role falls between the two possibilities. He thinks the police force-service dichotomy is false, as it does not reflect the true nature of police work. (2000) In this essay, I will argue that before the early 1990s, a wide conceptualisation of police responsibilities in relation to crime and also a broad social role of the police, were evident. Since then, there has been a shift towards a crime-fighting role, as the politics of law and order have dominated the criminal justice policy agenda. Despite the fact that the media portrays the police primarily as crime-fighters, in contemporary society the service role has not completely disappeared, due to developments such as community and neighbourhood policing. I will provide arguments for and against the idea of the police as primarily crime-fighters, before claiming that in my opinion, police officers are now both crime-fighters and service providers.

Reiner says that in both popular and police culture, the role of the police has always been seen in narrow crime-control terms; the police are there to catch robbers. (2012) However, in the nineteenth century, the conception of the crime-fighter role was challenged by official designations of the police role, from Peel to Scarman, as well as by many researchers who argued for a much wider conceptualisation of police responsibilities in relation to crime, as well as a much broader social role of the police. ‘Robert Peel, who arranged for the organization of the first paid, full-time, uniformed police department, conceived of the police role as a conspicuous community-orientated patrol designed more for prevention and deterrence than for enforcement.’ (Dempsey and Forst, 2011:p.126) A service role was very deliberately and explicitly encouraged so the police were not seen as a coercive body, but as giving a friendly service to the public. Public tranquillity was essential to be successful in preventing crime, as they really needed public support. It was very specifically distinguished from law enforcement and the act of catching criminals was downplayed immensely; this was because there was huge opposition when the police were established in 1829, and the idea of playing down the coercive aspects of the police, such as the public order role and by encouraging the service conception, allowed the police to be legitimated. (Reiner, 2012)

The perception that crime was only a small part of policing was apparent right up until the 1990s. However, since then, politics of law and order have dominated the criminal justice policy agenda, and therefore a shift has occurred towards the crime-control concept of the police role. This new role conforms to the statement ‘‘the police are primarily crime-fighters.’’ ‘Policing has moved away from the original Peelian ideal of providing crime prevention and public tranquillity to a more fragmented model of a range of tasks, which has proved problematic to define in terms of ‘core functions.’ (Mawby and Wright, 2008:p.240) The shift in perspective dated almost precisely to June 1993, when the ‘White Paper on Police Reforms’ said that the main job of the police was to catch criminals, however, the paper was contradictory. This has continued to be at the heart of most official pronouncements; the coalition’s paper ‘Policing in the 21st Century’ like all other official papers, said that prevention of crime is the primary role but then quickly moved to focus on the imperative of cutting crime through common sense policing, by putting the public in the driver’s seat. (ibid)

However, despite the police becoming crime-fighters since the early 1990s, this is not to say that the ‘service’ aspect of their role is now gone completely, due to developments such as community and neighbourhood policing which have emerged, in what Bayley and Shearing call a new era of policing. (Bayley and Shearing, 1996) With this greater pluralisation of the policing role in the modern era, Johnston argues that more parties participate to a greater degree in the policing function. (2000) ‘It is generally accepted that, in many countries, ‘policing’ is now…delivered by diverse networks of commercial bodies, voluntary and community groups, individual citizens…as well as the public police.’ (Newburn and Jones, 2006:p.1) The traditional role has been dispersed throughout the community, for example with new policing strategies such as Neighbourhood Watch. (Rowe, 2008)

Community policing is also now evident in our society and is what makes a police service different to a police force, as it emphasises the police as a responsive customer friendly service. Community policing can also be seen now as a commodity, as the rhetoric of service for citizens is transformed into the rhetoric of a service to the consumer. (Stenson, 1993) ‘The demands of…peace-keeping have maintained their importance, particularly in view of the rise of community policing philosophies which recommend just this kind of contact with the public.’ (Grimshaw and Jefferson, 1987:p.4) Problem-orientated policing also emphasises the service role, as it focuses on identifying and solving problems which produce emergency calls whilst making use of community resources, instead to responding to calls for assistance. (Goldstein, 1990) ‘There is a growing body of research evidence that problem-oriented policing is an effective approach for reducing crime, disorder, and fear.’ (Weisburd and Eck, 2004:p.55)

In his study of British police, Banton found that they were relatively unimportant in the enforcement of law, as more time was spent performing a wide array of public service roles. (1964) Academics such as Banton believe that the police are primarily service providers, as opposed to primarily crime-fighters. Similarly, Reiner said that the popular crime-fighting model of policing is inaccurate, as less than 25% of offences are detected by crime-fighting detection. (2000) Manning suggests that numerous observers of police work regard the primary role of a policeman as that of a peacekeeper, not a law enforcer. According to Reiner, the police should not be thought of primarily as a means of crime-control as this creates unrealistic expectations and diverts attention away from the more fundamental peace-keeping role. ‘According to this view, police spend most of their time attending to order-maintaining functions, such as finding lost children, substituting as ambulance drivers, or interceding in quarrels of one sort or another.’ (Manning, 1978:p.16) What constitutes as ‘service work’, however, is more controversial than the image we have of policemen rescuing cats out of trees. It has been argued that the primary role of the police is similar to that of a social worker, an administrative worker or a knowledge worker.

The police are increasingly being seen as philosophers, guides and friends (Cumming, Cumming and Edell, 1965) and as someone the public can go and speak to, within the social worker role. Bittner explains that everything becomes the business of the police and that the social service role is all roles not perceived as law enforcement. (1971) A BBC documentary highlighted an extreme example of the social service role in contemporary society, when an officer responded to elderly lady who could not open a tin of cat food. (BBC, 2006)

It can also be claimed that the primary role of a police officer is administration, obviously challenging the statement that police officers are primarily crime-fighters. Rowe argues that ‘it is clear that a quantitative answer to the question ‘what is policing’ might lead to the conclusion that it is an administrative role.’ (2008:p.14) He continues by saying ‘routines of police work are characterized by administrative…work which might not be understood as ‘real’ policing by police sub-culture or media representation, but are centrally important in terms of the proportion of time devoted to them.’ (ibid:p.13) This administrative role may be the primary function of some police officers, but not necessarily all; in order to reduce the administrative burden on patrol officers, for example, sometimes ‘the employment of Police Community Support Officers (PCSO’s) who can perform ancillary functions and allow police to attend frontline policing tasks’ (ibid:p.13-4) takes place. These officers complete administrative tasks such as record-keeping and form-filling. Manning states that ‘normal police work is boring, tiresome, dirty, technically demanding and rarely dangerous.’ (1977: 158-9)

In a study of police work in Canada, Ericson and Haggerty noted the considerable bureaucratic responsibility that constables had. (1997) ‘The extent of this aspect of police work led Ericson and Haggerty to argue that police officers had become ‘knowledge workers’ whose primary role was to communicate risk within the police service.’ (Rowe, 2008:p.14) This postmodern approach provides a new framework for the primary function of the police and reveals yet another challenge against the idea that police officers are primarily crime-fighters, as it argues that a police officer’s main role can be seen as a ‘’risk manager’’ and ‘’knowledge worker.’’ Ericson and Haggerty argue that the police are but one institution that works in a postmodern society which is organised to detect and manage a diverse array of risks. The police exchange and process information with their ‘‘partners’’ and then categorise and record risky persons, groups and places. Their success is based upon security, compliance and the diminution of risks, which is essential to contemporary society.

On the other hand, it can be debated that the police are primarily crime-fighters. A shift towards the crime-control conception of the police role has occurred, as politics of law and order have now dominated the criminal justice policy agenda. Firebrigade policing reinforces this as the more it happens, the more the public refer to, or think of the police as crime-fighters, due to the urgency of the flashing lights and rapid sirens. Reiner argues that to see the police as an emergency service fits and reinforces what is the effective public demand for them and also sets an achievable goal, which is not to get rid of crime, but to deal with it in a satisfactory way by providing provisional solutions. (2012) Manning claims that ‘the focal concern…of American policing, is crime control, and it has been historically structured’ (1978:p.89-90) ‘At first glance, there appears to be some truth to the belief that police are primarily crime-fighters.’ (Dempsey and Forst, 2011:p.125) Despite millions of arrests being made annually, many of these are not classified as ‘‘serious crimes’’ but rather as crimes of disorder, for example offences involving alcohol.

Despite the fact that police officers are crime-fighters, it is severely contested that this is their primary role. The influence of the media is very evident within these criticisms; Reiner believes that the mass media has the power to define what the police do and that the majority of people get almost all of their information on policing from the mass media. ‘Movies and television shows about the police emphasize the police crime-fighting role. If we believe these stories, the police engage in numerous daily gunfights, car chases…and they arrest numerous people every day.’ (Dempsey and Forst, 2011:p.124) This view is misleading as ‘they underplay the broader maintenance and service work that the officers do.’ (Rowe, 2008:p.15) Even television programmes such as ‘’Coppers’’ are not the reality of everyday policing; they are designed for the television market, and so their primary aim is to receive high ratings and therefore, make more money. Television programmes offer violence, mystery and fast-paced action, leading viewers to believe that the primary role of the police officer is confined to law enforcement: preventing and detecting crime and apprehending criminals. (Langworthy and Travis, 1994) Even the news media emphasize this role; television news shows and newspaper headlines dramatize exciting arrests and actions by the police.’ (Dempsey and Forst, 2011:p.124) The police are also seen as heroic crime-fighters, in shows such as ‘’Dixon of Dock Green.’’

This misrepresentation through the media means the public see the police as predominantly crime-fighters, too. ‘There is a widespread popular conception of police work as exciting, nerve-jangling chasing and apprehending of dangerous criminals. ‘This conception can be termed the "cops and robbers game"…or the "crime-fighting" symbolic focus of modern police work.’ (Manning, 1977:p.347) The average citizen thinks of the police as primarily concerned with preventing crime and capturing criminals. ‘When crime increases or criminals go uncaught, the conventional public response is to demand more…policemen. When the crime goes down…the police often get…the credit.’ (Wilson, 1971:p.202) The public will especially see patrol officers as crime-fighters, as they will not also see the administrative side the officer performs. Delinquent gangs who are more actively criminal and therefore targeted are more likely to see the police as primarily crime-fighters, as they will see them more often.

It can be seen that police officers are still comprehended as crime-fighters through the empirical example of the 9/11 terrorist attack in New York. ‘Since 9/11, many have seen the police as the frontline of homeland defense against further terrorist attacks, and many police…officers themselves are viewing themselves similarly.’ (Dempsey and Forst, 2011:p.127) Specialised military-like antiterrorist units have been created as a consequence, focusing attention on the law enforcement of the police and the media coverage has reinforced this.

‘There is little doubt that the occupational self-image of the police is that of ‘crime-fighters’ and this is not just a distortion of what they do, it is virtually a collective delusion.’ (Waddington, 1999:p.299) They emphasise their role as crime-fighters, whilst de-emphasising their job as social service providers because our society cares little for peace-keeping, but rewards crime-fighting. ‘The routine service functions produce little self-esteem and may…contain risk to the policeman’s dignity (for example, directing traffic, settling a domestic dispute’ (Manning, 1977:p.118) Despite danger and uncertainty being appealing facets of the work which police officers emphasise, these dangerous activities represent considerably less than 10 percent of the police patrol time. (Black, 1968) Police officers favour reactive methods such as firebrigade policing, as this supports their enforcement role. In addition to this, ‘the sense of a crime-fighting mission provides ideological justification for the authority that is exercised against fellow citizens.’ (Waddington, 1999:p.302)

The fact that every police officer uses their own discretion in all circumstances also influences how much crime-fighting occurs. ‘Police…must exercise broad discretion, including discretion in deciding whether to arrest and prosecute in situations in which there is ample evidence that a criminal law has been violated.’ (Goldstein, 1990:p.11) However, ‘research evidence makes it very clear that police officers tend to under-utilize their capacity to use force to resolve conflict.’ (Rowe, 2008:p.10) The officer may think the best way of controlling a drunk person is by seizing them physically, emphasising the crime-fighter role, however, they may refrain from doing this as, if the drunk person complained, the officer would have to justify his action and give ample evidence why they did it, which is a lot more effort.

Arguably, contemporary developments are contradictory to the crime-fighter role, given that the emphasis in society now is on both ‘law and order’ and also the service role, including community policing. However, community policing can be also used as a crime-control tool, as well as a service. Reiner believes that the force-service dichotomy is a false one and the unique character of British policing lies in the merging of tasks of law enforcement and order maintenance. (2000) I agree with Reiner that contemporary society is not completely dominated by the crime-fighting or service providing roles, but indeed that police work involves aspects of both.

Whilst taking the debate further from the narrower confines of the force-service dichotomy, I think that reactive force policing, which emphasises crime-fighting, can be used alongside proactive service policing, which focuses on community policing. Reactive policing, for example firebrigade policing is grounded in the law. Despite day to day policing involving a balance of enforcement and discretion, this model reflects the perceived public demand for enforcement type policing, for example, ‘catch a dealer a day’ type campaigns implemented in Teesside. On the other hand, proactive policing makes greater use of the partnership working with other agencies and the public. In contemporary society, these two models work together to ensure that the public are safe. For example, Durham Constabulary’s objectives are to protect neighbourhoods, tackle crime, and solve problems, in order to deliver excellent policing, inspire confidence in victims and communities. If the patrol officers did not establish trust within communities and develop long term proactive solutions to problems, then there would be more criminal incidents for the firebrigade police to respond to.

However, a different solution for modern policing has been offered by Left Realists, Kinsey, Lea and Young called ‘’Minimal-Reactive Policing.’’ (1986) They argue that there needs to be an emphasis on crime-fighting by a truly accountable police force and the role of the police as a service needs to be minimalized. This, they argue, will win community trust. There is a relationship between the crime-fighting and the service provider role as, when you are providing service to one sector of the community, this often involves executing force against another sector of the community. ‘The police combine both roles and it is the balance between the two that at times comes into conflict.’ (Mawby and Wright, 2008:p.240)

Within the police, there are also some particular sections which are more likely to be referred to as crime-fighting. For example, detectives within the ‘’Criminal Investigation Department’’ are involved in investigating more serious crimes, such as murder. Therefore, they are more likely to ‘‘catch the criminals’’ than a traffic cop, who is there predominantly for order-maintenance. On the other hand, it can also be argued that as well keeping the peace, a patrol officer’s primary role is to be a visible symbol of social control. This will influence the public, especially criminals, as, if they see police officers, they will think twice about committing any crimes in that area, as there will be more chance they will be caught. Foucault’s work on the ‘’panopticon’’ reflects this idea as it reinforces the idea that if people know they are being watched, their behaviour will change. (1975)

Before the early 1990s, the police performed a wide range of responsibilities and a service role was very deliberately encouraged in order to legitimise the newly-emerging police. Though, since then, there has been a shift towards a crime-fighting role, due to the dominance of the politics of law and order. However, the service role has not completely disappeared in contemporary society; for example, community, neighbourhood and problem-orientated policing are all very evident. Therefore, ‘the police service…performs a broad range of tasks including public reassurance, crime reduction, crime investigation, emergency service, peacekeeping, order maintenance and state security,’ (Reiner and Newburn, 2007:p.240) whilst providing a social service and having a crime-fighting duty. The general population and the police officers themselves still maintain the image of the police predominantly as crime-fighters; nevertheless, this is fundamentally caused by the influence of the media representation of the police’s function. However, it can be seen that the police perform a huge range of tasks, with law enforcement as only a small part of this. As such, I do not agree with the statement that ‘the police are primarily crime-fighters’; I argue that police officers can be described as both service providers and crime-fighters in contemporary society and not primarily one or the other.