Michigan State University Libraries - Criminal Justice Resources : Police Corruption

Criminal Justice Resources :
Police Corruption - Police Integrity

This compilation of resources focuses on web sites dealing with police corruption or police integrity issues. Related topics include Law Enforcement and Police Use of Force.

Addressing Police Misconduct
http://www.usdoj.gov/crt/cor/Pubs/polmis.htm
Laws enforced by the U.S. Department of Justice. Oct. 30, 2000.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Bad Cops: A Study of Career-Ending Misconduct Among New York City Police Officers
http://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/215795.pdf
Officers whose personal histories included arrest, traffic violations, and failure in other jobs were more likely than other officers to be terminated from their jobs because of misconduct. Officers who held associate or higher degrees were less likely than those without them to be dismissed for misconduct. Those who did well in the academy's recruit training program were also less likely than marginal recruits to be terminated for misconduct. As the representation of Hispanic and Asian officers in the New York City Police Department (NYPD) has increased, their rates of involuntary separation from the department have decreased and become indistinguishable from those of White officers. Black officers representation in the department has remained relatively flat over the years studied; their involuntary separation rates have also decreased, but remain higher than those for other racial groups in the department. James J. Fyfe and Robert Kane. September 2006.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Bad Cops Research Page
http://www.badcops.org/research.htm
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Building Public Confidence in Police Through Civilian Oversight
http://www.vera.org/content/building-public-confidence-police-through-civilian-oversight
In both new and more mature democratic societies, citizens are putting increased pressure on police not only to control crime but also to treat everyone they contact fairly and with respect. This paper explores the different ways that citizens can monitor and shape law enforcement practices, and the challenges of that work. It captures issues discussed at an international meeting on civilian oversight of police held in Los Angeles in May 2002. That meeting brought together police officials from Brazil, the Czech Republic, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Nigeria, Peru, Russia, South Africa, and the United States and those who oversee their work from elsewhere within government and from non-governmental organizations.
The paper begins with a look at why civilian oversight arises, moves on to consider some of the tensions and competing interests related to crafting an appropriate role for civilian overseers, and ends with discussions about how overseers can maintain independence and objectivity while collaborating with police and the need to hold themselves accountable. Emma Phillips and Jennifer Trone, Vera Institute of Justice, September 2002.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Can Federal Intervention Bring Lasting Improvement in Local Policing?: The Pittsburgh Consent Decree
http://www.vera.org/content/can-federal-intervention-bring-lasting-improvement-local-policing-pittsburgh-consent-decree
This study sheds light on ways in which federal oversight of local police forces suspected of patterns of abuse can have continuing benefits. Vera researchers found that reforms initiated under federal oversight—including new systems to track the use of force and traffic stops and searches; new procedures to hold officers accountable; and new policies and training—were sustained even after that oversight ended. Despite recent financial strains, those reforms remain in place today, and the opinions of community leaders and citizens reflect significant improvements in service. Yet Vera also found that many citizens and front-line officers remain skeptical about the reforms' impact. The report follows an earlier study which examined the impact of the consent decree during its implementation. Robert C. Davis, Nicole J. Henderson, and Christopher W. Ortiz, Vera Institute of Justice, April 2005. 62 pages
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Civilian Oversight of Police : Lessons from the Literature
http://www.vera.org/content/civilian-oversight-policing-lessons-literature
This paper reviews the English language literature on the civilian oversight of police. It was prepared for the third global meeting on Policing in Democratic Societies, which took place in Los Angeles in May 2002. Joel Miller, Vera Institute of Justice.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Civilian Oversight of the Police in the United States
link
Merrick Bobb discusses citizen oversight of law enforcement in the St. Louis University Public Law Review. The article discusses the history of policing and police reform in the United States and explores approaches to civilian oversight, including independent monitors, civilian review boards and "pattern or practice" consent decrees. Mr. Bobb's article first appeared in the Saint Louis University Public Law Review, Volume XXII, Number one, 2003. 23pp.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Code Blue
Prosecuting police brutality requires penetrating the blue wall of silence. The obstacles to policing police brutality and investigating and prosecuting cases of police misconduct and several cases that illustrate the thickness of the blue wall of silence are examined. Jerome H Skolnick. The American Prospect. Princeton: Mar 27-Apr 10, 2000.Vol.11, Iss. 10; pg. 49, 5 pgs.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Color of Law Investigations
http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Color+of+Law+Investigations-a065241456
The vast majority of police officers perform their difficult jobs in a professional manner. However, exceptions do occur. In one instance, an on-duty sheriffs deputy approached a verbally abusive drug addict strapped to a gurney in an emergency room, drew his pistol, placed the barrel of the weapon into the addict's mouth, and threatened to pull the trigger if he did not stop shouting. Police misconduct also encompasses less obvious wrongdoing, such as striking suspects more than necessary or threatening to harm them if they do not cooperate. Article by John r. Schafer. The FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin, Aug 1, 2000.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Coping with Police Misconduct in West Virginia: Citizen Involvement in Officer Disciplinary Procedures—A Review of Existing Law, Legislative Initiatives, and Disciplinary Models
http://www.usccr.gov/pubs/sac/wv0104/main.htm
Based on a background paper produced by the West Virginia Advisory Committee to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, this paper summarizes the Committee's research to date and addresses three major themes: the ongoing problem of police brutality and existing disciplinary structure in the State, past legislative attempts to reform disciplinary procedures and the experiences of two recent review boards established in Bluefield and Charleston, and alternative models and methods used successfully in other parts of the country. U.S. Commission on Civil Rights. February 2004.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Cops v. Citizen Review
http://mediafilter.org/caq/Caq55.CopsVscr.html
"I had been in internal affairs investigations a couple of times, and they were very easy to breeze through. I answered a few questions. I lied through every answer, and I went back to patrol." -- Former New York City police officer Michael Dowd. Article by by Lynne Wilson appearing in Covert Action Quarterly, no. 55, Winter 1996. Note: The full text of Covert Action Quarterly is available in the MSU Libraries Special Collections unit.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Early Warning Systems: Responding to the Problem Police Officer
http://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/188565.pdf
Published by the National Institute of Justice, July 2001.
(Last checked 09/02/05)

Enhancing Police Integrity
http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/nij/pubs-sum/209269.htm
A recently released report by the National Institute of Justice. Takes a new approach to measuring police officer conduct. Rather than focusing on potential corruption, the researchers measured the integrity of police officers—including their willingness to report the misconduct of fellow officers—through uniquely developed tools and techniques. The study finds that an agency’s culture of integrity, as stated in clearly understood and implemented policies and rules, may be more important in shaping an officer’s ethics than hiring the “right” people. Police executives should consider some of the tactics developed through this study to evaluate their own agencies.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Ethics Training in Law Enforcment
http://web.archive.org/web/20010620062511/
http://theiacp.org/pubinfo/Pubs/ethictrain.htm
Note: works best with Mozilla Firefox.
Ethics is our greatest training and leadership need today and into the next century. In addition to the fact that most departments do not conduct ethics training, nothing is more devastating to individual departments and our entire profession than uncovered scandals or discovered acts of officer misconduct and unethical behavior. The effects of unethical acts and behavior take many forms. A report by the Ethics Training Subcommittee of the International Association of Chiefs of Police Ad Hoc Committee on Police Image and Ethics.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Evaluating Police Officers
http://web.archive.org/web/20050407021355/http://www.concentric.net/~dwoods/evaluate.htm
Note: works best with Mozilla Firefox.
Having methods to evaluate police officers is obviously highly critical to determine if officers are performing in accordance with the mission of the organization and their job description. Article by Robert C. Trojanowicz from the Community Policing Pages. 1998. Still available thanks to the Internet Archive.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

False Arrest, Malicious Prosecution and Police Misconduct: Pleadings and Practice (Book).
Jerome M. Ginsberg Juris Publishing Inc., January 1992. Available in the Gast Business Library Stacks.

Fighting Police Abuse: A Community Action Model
http://web.archive.org/web/20041031080318/
Note: works best with Mozilla Firefox.
archive.aclu.org/library/fighting_police_abuse.html
Courtesy of the ACLU. August 1997.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

A Global Forum on Fighting Corruption:
Safeguarding Integrity Among Justice and Security Officials
http://www.state.gov/www/global/narcotics_law/global_forum/appendix2.html
The "Vice President's Conference on Fighting Corruption and Safeguarding Integrity Among Justice and Security Officials" -- the world's first conference to target corruption specifically among police, prosecutors, judges, military personnel, customs officials, border guards, financial regulators and budget/procurement officials -- will be held in Washington, DC from February 24-26, 1999...
(Last checked 10/17/11)

How to Train Cops
http://www.city-journal.org/html/10_4_how_to_train.html
New York's Police Academy does a model job of turning raw recruits into efficient officers. It should put more focus on good vs. bad, less on black vs. white. Article by Heather Mac Donald.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Internal Affairs: Issues for Small Police Departments
http://www.findarticles.com/cf_dls/m2194/7_72/107121939/p1/article.jhtml
In the United States, most of what Americans know about the internal affairs of law enforcement agencies appears to come from the entertainment industry. Citizens generally believe that all police departments have a squad of officers assigned only to "police the police." This may be tree for large agencies, but not for the vast majority of police departments in the country. Eighty-seven percent of police departments in the United States consist of fewer than 25 sworn officers. (1) Yet, society holds these small agencies accountable for the conduct of their officers via the same laws and judicial review process that it holds departments with hundreds or even thousands of officers. How does an agency with very few officers meet this obligation? FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin,The, July, 2003, by Sean F. Kelly.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Knapp Commission
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knapp_Commission
The Knapp Commission (officially known as the Commission to Investigate Alleged Police Corruption) stemmed from a five member panel initially formed in April 1970 by Mayor John V. Lindsay to investigate corruption within the New York City Police Department. The creation of the commission was largely a result of the publicity generated by the public revelations of police corruption made by Patrolman Frank Serpico and Sergeant David Durk.
The inadequacy and inability of local law-enforcement agencies to cope with organized crime was underscored by the Knapp Commission, which uncovered relations between New York City police and organized crime.
Also listed under Crime Commissions and Investigations.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

The Knapp Commission Report on Police Corruption (Book)
http://magic.msu.edu/record=b1461617a
New York, G. Braziller [1973?]. 283pp.
Also listed under Crime Commissions and Investigations.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Lansing Police Department
Analysis of the Discipline Process and Outcomes, with Recommendations, for the Lansing Police Department
Executive Summary : http://www.lansingmi.gov/Lansing/police/docs/discipline/DisciplineSummary.pdf
Full report : http://www.lansingmi.gov/Lansing/police/docs/discipline/Disciplinefinal.pdf
Minorities at the Lansing Police Department have a disproportionate number of complaints filed against them by their superiors and the public. Minorities who make up 20% of employees received about 35 percent of complaints and 39 percent of sustained -- or proved valid -- charges. The analysis was conducted by Theodore Curry II, Head, MSU School of Labor and Industrial Relations. July 13, 2004.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

L.A.P.D. Blues
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/lapd/
This 2001 site explores the Los Angeles Police Department Rampart [CRASH unit] scandal and investigation, "a tangled web linking officers with street gangs, drug dealing, and the gangsta rap underworld." Includes a chronology; interviews; rap lyrics about the police; and information on the legacy of the Rodney King beating, Suge Knight, and Death Row Records. From the PBS series Frontline (includes transcript).
Also listed under Crime Commissions and Investigations.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

LAPD Computer Targets Rogue Cops
http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,1282,68294,00.html
Dogged by scandal, the Los Angeles Police Department is looking beyond human judgment to technology to identify bad cops. This month, the agency began using a $35 million computer system that tracks complaints and other telling data about officers -- then alerts top supervisors to possible signs of misconduct.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Law Enforcement Ethics: the Continuum of Compromise
http://web.archive.org/web/20080822074432/http://www.rcmp-learning.org/docs/ecdd1222.htm
Note: works best with Mozilla Firefox.
During the past few years, law enforcement behavior has been the subject of increased scrutiny across the country. Rodney King, Ruby Ridge, Waco, evidence planting in Philadelphia, Mark Furhman's testimony, "Operation Big Spender" and the chase and apprehension of the illegal aliens in Southern California are just some of the incidents that have captured the nation's attention. With each new headline, mistrust of law enforcement increases; police/community relations suffer; and the reputations of good, hardworking and ethical law enforcement professionals and their organizations are tainted. Even the most avid supporters of law enforcement wonder what is happening and are asking, "Can the police be trusted to police themselves?" While high profile cases capture the nation's attention, law enforcement agencies across the country spend an increasing amount of time investigating, disciplining and prosecuting officers for unethical or criminal behaviors that never make it to the front pages. Still available thanks to the Internet Archives.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Los Angeles Police Department
Board of Inquiry into the Rampart Area Corruption Incident
http://web.archive.org/web/20030315042429/http://www.lapdonline.org/pdf_files/pc/boi_pub.pdf
Note: works best with Mozilla Firefox.
On March 1, Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) commanders released the full text and executive summary of an internal, four-month Board of Inquiry investigation. The investigation centered on a host of alleged corrupt and criminal activities by the Rampart Area neighborhood's anti-gang unit. Among its findings were lax departmental supervision, tight-knit and almost gang-like behavior among the unit's members, and the improper assignment of new recruits to risky and sensitive positions, such as the anti-gang unit at Rampart. The report suggests 108 changes in department policies and procedures. Despite resistance from the LAPD, the city's civilian Police Commission announced on Tuesday that it would launch its own review of the force's disciplinary system and its ethics and culture. Still available thanks to the Internet Archive.
Also listed under Crime Commissions and Investigations.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Mediating Citizen Complaints Against Police Officers:
A Guide for Police and Community Leaders
http://www.cops.usdoj.gov/pdf/e04021486web.pdf
Samuel Walker et al., University of Nebraska Omaha, Department of Criminal Justice, 2002. 111pp.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Police Accountability
http://web.archive.org/web/20050405174912/http://www.concentric.net/~dwoods/account.htm
Note: works best with Mozilla Firefox.
Many assume when talking about police accountability, that it relates to merely how the police organization evaluates personnel and then holds them accountable for their actions. It is much more complex than that, however, because ultimately the police are accountable to the community they serve. Article by Robert C. Trojanowicz from the Community Policing Pages. 1998. Still available thanks to the Internet Archives.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Police Assessment Resource Center (PARC)
http://www.parc.info
PARC supports and assists those responsible for the oversight of police departments -- monitors, law enforcement executives, civic officials, and government agencies -- to advance effective, respectful, and publicly accountable policing. PARC regularly publishes reports and articles concerning police oversight. Some of these reports detail monitoring activities in various jurisdictions where PARC has been engaged as a consultant to the monitor. Others were articles produced by the PARC staff. On a monthly basis, PARC publishes the Best Practices Review, a newsletter containing up-to-date news, interviews and events. Previous issues of the Best Practices Review can be accessed by clicking here. This page also contains other publications and websites of interest to those concerned with police reform and oversight.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Police Practices and Civil Rights in New York City
http://web.archive.org/web/20011127003507/
http://www.usccr.gov/nypolprc/main.htm
Note: works best with Mozilla Firefox.
On May 26, 1999, the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights conducted a hearing in New York City to examine current police practices and their impact on civil rights in the community at large. The Commission had a strong interest in studying the methods used by the city to balance crime fighting with the exercise of appropriate restraint, particularly following the highly publicized tragedies involving Abner Louima and Amadou Diallo. This report is intended to offer insights into some of the tensions that exist between the New York Police Department (NYPD) and the communities that it serves. A report by the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights. August 2000.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Policing Their Own
http://www.chicagoreporter.com/1999/09-99/0999main.htm
Article by Rebecca Anderson appearing in the Chicago Reporter, Sept. 1999.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Prosecuting Police Misconduct:
Reflections on the Role of the U.S. Civil Rights Division
http://www.vera.org/content/prosecuting-police-misconduct-reflections-role-us-civil-rights-movement
A report by Alexis Agathocleous and Heather Ward of the Vera Institute of Criminal Justice. In June 1998, five former Assistant Attorneys General for Civil Rights, two veteran Civil Rights Division attorneys, and Division Chief Bill Lann Lee gathered at the Vera Institute of Justice to discuss the federal government's efforts to prosecute police misconduct over the past four decades. Prosecuting Police Misconduct: Reflections on the Role of the U.S. Civil Rights Division draws principally on that meeting. By referring to specific cases, the report traces the Civil Rights Division's evolving approach and pinpoints advantages as well as limitations associated with federal prosecution. 1998. 24pp.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

The Public Accountability of Private Police: Lessons from New York, Johannesburg, and Mexico City
http://www.vera.org/content/public-accountability-private-police-lessons-new-york-johannesburg-and-mexico-city
PDF: 190 KB/53 pages
Vera Institute of Justice published: 8/1/2000
This paper looks at how private police are actually held accountable through a set of three case studies drawn from different countries. The literature on private policing is remarkably uninformed by empirical data, although a few works have investigated the scope of private policing through interviews with people working in the industry. It is our hope that the case studies will help to fill this gap in the literature.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Public Corruption: A Comparative Analysis of International Corruption Conventions and United States Law
http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=298089
Peter J. Henning, Wayne State University Law School
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Repairing Broken Windows (police corruption)
http://www.findarticles.com/cf_dls/m2194/2_70/72299788/p1/article.jhtml
In the last two decades, research and commentary regarding the causes and effects of law enforcement corruption have intensified and diversified. Efforts in Australia, Canada, Great Britain, and the United States have effectively identified symptoms and remedies in those countries, as emerging democracies in Africa, Eastern Europe, and the Pacific Rim face the more immediate and stark realities of self-governance and the police role. Comparative reviews of problems and best practices, as well as academic research, suggest that corruption follows certain predictable routes and that precursory signs occur prior to any actual quid pro quo corrupt activity. FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin , Feb, 2001, by Frank L. Perry.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Report of the Rampart Independent Review Panel
http://www.ci.la.ca.us/oig/rirprpt.pdf
A report to the Los Angeles Board of Police Commissioners concerning the operations, policies, and procedures of the Los Angeles Police Department in the wake of the Rampart scandal. November 16, 2000. 258pp.
Also listed under Crime Commissions and Investigations.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Reputable Conduct: Ethical Issues in Policing and Corrections (Book Review)
http://www.findarticles.com/cf_dls/m2194/10_70/80787338/p1/article.jhtml
Also available in MSU Library
Why did a law enforcement officer in a large metropolitan police department brutalize a suspect? Why did it take several days for his colleagues to admit to witnessing the event? Such questions lead officers to ponder their moral duties and obligations, known generally as ethical considerations, as they relate to the law enforcement profession.
Some of the hardest decisions law enforcement officers make during their careers involve ethical issues. As a result, the actions taken to resolve these issues play a vital role in defining officers throughout their careers.
Source: FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin, Oct. 2001, by Stanley B. Burke.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Review of National Police Oversight Models for the Eugene Police Commission
http://web.archive.org/web/20050514065546/www.parc.info/pubs/pdf/PARC+Eugene+Police+Commission+Report.pdf
Note: works best with Mozilla Firefox.
The Police Commission asked PARC to report on oversight models in jurisdictions that have similar sized populations and police departments as Eugene. Additionally, the Commission was interested in models that represented the wide variety currently in existence in the United States. In the report, PARC created a new conceptual framework for categorizing police oversight models. The new categories are Review and Appellate Models, Investigative and Quality Assurance Models, and Evaluative and Performance-Based Models. The report was presented to the Police Commission and to the public in addition to being covered in the local media. Police Assessment Resource Center. Feb. 2005
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Revisiting Who is Guarding the Guardians?
http://web.archive.org/web/20011116075934/
http://www.usccr.gov/guardian/main.htm
Note: works best with Mozilla Firefox.
A Report on Police Practices and Civil Rights in America by the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights. Nov. 2000.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Shielded from Justice:
Police Brutality and Accountability in the USA
http://www.hrw.org/reports98/police/
This report from Human Rights Watch details the results of an investigation of police brutality in 14 large cities in the United States (includes Detroit). Examined are accountability, systems to deal with abuse, race as a factor, civil rights prosecution, codes of silence and other contributing factors. Note: The corresponding 1998 report is also available in Main Library Stacks HV8141 .S48 1998
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Should the Diallo Cops Face Civil Rights Charges
http://web.archive.org/web/20000815234836/
www.speakout.com/Issues/Briefs/1187/
Note: works best with Mozilla Firefox.
SpeakOut.com overview by Jenny Murphy, February 28, 2000. Still available thanks to the Internet Archives.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Stephen Lawrence Inquiry (United Kingdom)
http://www.archive.official-documents.co.uk/document/cm42/4262/4262.htm
http://www.archive.official-documents.co.uk/document/cm42/4262/sli-00.htm
Note: works best with Mozilla Firefox.
Home Office investigation into a racially motivated crime and the ineffective follow-up by local police which led to a Code of Practice on reporting and recording racist incidents in response to recommendation 15 of the Stephen Lawrence Inquiry Report. Feb. 1999 and April 2000.
Also listed under Crime Commissions and Investigations.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Understanding and Preventing Police Corruption: Lessons from the Literature
http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/prgpdfs/fprs110.pdf
Tim Newburn. Police Research Series Paper 110, 1999.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

Weeding Out Bad Cops Before They Become Deadly
long link
Paper by Leonard J. Coklow, Detroit Police Department, 2002 for Eastern Michigan University School of Police and Staff Command Program.
(Last checked 10/17/11)

For additional books on police corruption or misconduct, search MAGIC. Try typing in the following subject headings under LC Subject.

Police Corruption or
Police Misconduct

Ownership Statement Jon Harrison : Page Editor Criminal Justice Specialist Social Sciences Collections Coordinator Michigan State University Libraries 366 W. Circle Drive E. Lansing, MI 48824-1048 harris23@mail.lib.msu.edu Last revised 10/17/11