Law
Essay on Ethic in Criminal Justice Administration
Introduction
In a professional environment ethics defines professionalism which is vital in any operating organization. It is normally practiced in all companies and even setting their own standards of ethics through series of policies and procedures that needs to be observed within the company premises and time. But some individual often cross the boundaries of rules of ethics making them violators within the organization. Ethics is a control mechanism which regulates how the people within the organization should behave in order to maintain smooth operation. Ethics is also known as the philosophy of absolute morality, it is a study of differentiating what is right and what is wrong. Ethics sets the rules of how civilization should live as far as moral judgment is concern. Right and wrong manifests in a person’s course of action and conduct and it are divided into three branches. The fist one is metaethics; this concerns all methods of language, the use of reasoning in interpreting the ethical terms and structure of logical thinking. The second branch is normative ethics which determines the standards of behavior and conduct. And the last branch is the applied ethics which involves how the problems were resolved.
Just as mentioned ethics should be observed at all times, most especially in any professional environment, but what if it concerns criminal justice? The relationship between professionalism in criminal justice and ethics are sometimes overseen by some individuals in the criminal justice administration side. It is important on every sense to analyze the relationship between ethics and professionalism in administrations of criminal justice. Not only to ensure credibility within the organization but to keep the essence of justice intact among the people working on the field of justice and law enforcement. A proposed seminar is needed to train law enforcers of this importance by utilizing the five areas of ethical conduct which will be beneficial for the organization and people working behind it.
Ethics are standards that individuals choose to live by. A set of choices we make towards how we live our life. It gives us definition of what is right and what is wrong, what is good and what is bad. When we are not sure of what to do when it comes to morality ethics provides us a way to make moral decisions. Critical thinking is what causes our ethics to be fluid. It is a form of judgment, a reflective judgment. If ethics helps us determine the right and wrong, the good and bad, critical thinking helps us determine what the outcome would be when we make decisions based on ethics. Say for example, a policeman who caught his son selling drugs. Morally he knows that he must arrest his son because it is the right thing to do however the policeman also knows that if he arrests his son, his son will go to jail. So there is a dilemma in the policeman’s situation wherein his ethics are being tested. There is an essential relationship between critical thinking and ethics. Both of which must be kept in balance if they are to be viable and useful in our daily lives most especially in the criminal justice administration where individuals with position and power have to do crucial decisions.
Ethics play a vital role when understanding the mission of being a public servant. When law enforcement officers understand what ethics are about, harmonious relationship within the community can be built and further improved. Full cooperation can be expected from the citizens. Crimes would lessen and peace can be achieved in the community. It is then proposed that a Seminar for Ethics Training for Law Enforcement Officers should be conducted. This Seminar will tackle five areas of ethical conduct namely: Ethical Problems in the Use of Authority, Ethical Problems in the Relationship Between Personal and Professional Interests, Ethical Problems in Personal and Professional Commitments to Clients, Ethical Problems in Information Sharing, and Ethical Issues Dealing with Human Right Issues combined with Ethical Issues in the Media Reporting of Crime.
Ethical Problems in the Use of Authority is one of the topics needed to be discussed in the seminar. There are instances that law enforcement officers abuse their authority as policemen when it comes to promoting personal values and avoiding liability for mistakes that they have made. Law enforcement officers must be accountable for their actions as this will show integrity and trustworthiness to the public.
Ethical Problems in the Relationship Between Personal and Professional Interests is also a topic that needs to be detailed. Issues regarding the usage of their position by gaining personal interest like financial needs or promulgating religion and philosophy. The use of their office time and materials for their own personal gain not related to their duties as a law enforcement officers. Involving one’s self to use of drugs or driving under the influence of alcohol are also included in this area. Learning to differentiate their personal and professional duties would be very helpful to a policeman in upholding the law. Knowing what is the right thing and knowing the repercussions of each decision will allow them to grow personally even more.
Dealing with clients also needs to be explained to our police officers. The proper behavior when dealing with clients and using relationships with clients or the public for personal gain needs to be detailed. We have had issues in the past when police officers would accept gifts or purchase goods for a lower cost. These are incorporated in Ethical Problems in Personal and Professional Commitments to Clients.
Ethical Problems in Information Sharing can simply result from an effort by law enforcement officials to prevent terror attacks. To be secured, they would scan emails of individual persons who they think may be a possible terrorist or a threat to the society together with those of innocent law-abiding citizens. The dilemma then is whether privacy or security is of greater concern.
Ethical Issues Dealing with Human Right Issues and Ethical Issues in the Media Reporting of Crime are of the same nature. These are difficult problems to address and require a code of principles one can refer to. Acting responsibly is not enough to solve these kinds of issues.
The areas aforementioned are important because it deals with both internal and external factors in an individual. Ethics does not just involve one’s self but also the environment where officials are exercising their duties. Including these areas in the seminar would help enlighten the minds of our law enforcement officers and the public of what is morally right and acceptable in the society. The seminar would benefit both officers and the public. Law enforcement officers would have a basis of what needs to be done and they would be more conscious of the decisions that they make. The public on the other hand would know what their rights are to prevent abuse from law enforcement officers. Harmonious relationships can be built within the community if both the public and the law enforcement officers work hand in hand to uphold peace and safety in the community.
The role of ethics in law enforcement officers would help shape police officers in doing what is right in upholding the law and doing their duties the right way that it should be done.
References
Sagepub.com. The Importance of Ethics in Criminal Justice. Web Retrieved February 24, 2012 from http://www.sagepub.com/upm-data/4031_Banks_Chapter_1_Proof.pdf
Gilman, Stuart C. Ph. D. (Winter 2005) Ethics Codes and Codes of Conduct As Tools For Promoting An Ethical and Professional Public Service: Comparative Successes and Lessons. Web Retrieved February 24, 2012 from http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/17/33/35521418.pdf
