Introduction
The law enforcement agency is one of the key components of the United States criminal justice system. The law enforcement agency, consisting of the police, is charged with the maintenance of law and order as well as the arrest and investigation of offenders. The policing function in the United States assumes a tripartite character at the operational level namely; the local, state and the federal level. Similarly, the responsibilities as well as the organizational, management and operational functions of each of the levels are clearly delineated. This paper seeks to study the similarities and dissimilarities that exists among the three levels of the law enforcement agency by examining the functions and the exercise of functions of each of the levels. The role of the police is usually wider and not limited to that of maintenance of order and law enforcement. In a bid to highlight the similarities and disparities in functions and operations at the three levels of the agency, it is imperative to explore the functions of each of them.
Agencies
Law enforcement agencies in the United States include the local police department, the state department and the federal department in total contrast to other countries that possess a much centralized form of policing. The absence of a monolithic police system as is the case in most of other countries lead to some duplication and overlap of duties amongst the three levels.
Police Departments
Local police departments are the most common of the police agencies and are usually run by municipalities, county sheriff’s department as well as to other special departments such as the port and campus police. The Sheriff departments normally work at the county level serving the police force in areas where the police are absent. Most of their role is restricted to serving court orders, maintaining order in the courtroom during legal proceedings as well as operating county jails. State and local laws are usually enforced by the local police at the local level. The main functions of local police officers range from controlling traffic, patrolling streets and investigation of offences. In some of the departments, the same local police are engaged in animal control, provision of emergency medical care and crowd control at entertainment spots. In the big city departments, there are special units of the local police who handle the fight against terrorism as well as community problems which include drunk driving, victim assistance and missing children, among others. In addition, they also cater for the needs of the special persons of the society such as the homeless, victims of HIV/AIDS and domestic violence, as well as abused children.
The State police agencies are 49 in number. They are charged with the wide authority of enforcing traffic laws, conducting criminal investigations, investigating traffic accidents and providing assistance to any other police agency which requests for such assistance. In most cases, state police exercise functions outside the jurisdiction of the Sheriff’s county such as those of enforcing traffic laws on state highways. The state police also offer protection to state capital buildings, offer protection to the Governor of the state, train other officers and provide access to crime laboratories to the local police whenever such need arises.
On the other hand, the federal law enforcement officers are mainly concerned with the enforcement of national laws. Their work encompasses the protection of the President and other members of national institutions, investigation of counterfeits, policing of airports and the control of illegal immigration into the country. They are also engaged in investigation of crimes that are not unique to only one state such as drug trafficking or internet fraud. To this end, the functions of the two levels of police overlap. The federal law enforcement officers also enforce the law in federal buildings such as the U.S Capitol and in the national parks. The federal law enforcement agency was reorganized following the 2001 September terrorist attack and was marked by the creation of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). This body, one of the most common of the agency today, fundamentally realigned the policing activities into a single key mission-that of protecting the United States. To achieve this key objective, the DHS was divided into several arms which include the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the U.S Secret Service. The CBP merged inspectional work forces with broad border authorities of the Customs, Immigration, Border Patrol and the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service. The ICE is the biggest of the DHS agency that makes use of the immigration authorities as an effective tool in the fight against terrorism. This it does by targeting illegal immigrants as well as the persons and money that support their criminal activities. The U.S Secret Service is concerned with the protection of senior government officers and their families including the President. To this end, it offers protection to the White House, foreign missions and other buildings as well as planning and implementation of relevant security designs. Further, the branch conducts investigations on breaches of the law relating to counterfeiting and other financial crimes.
United States Federal Bureau of Investigations and United States Marshals
In addition, some of the most common agencies at the federal level are the U.S Marshals and the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI). The U.S Marshals is the enforcement arm of the federal courts involved in overall policing program and exercising full authority and jurisdiction over other federal officers. Some of the functions of the officers in this agency include the protection of federal judicial officers, arrest of fugitives and offenders and operating the Witness Security Program. The FBI is the chief investigative arm of the United States with the duty of defending the country against terrorism and foreign intelligence threats, upholding and enforcing the criminal sanctions as well as offering leadership and law enforcement assistance to other levels of the police system. As a result of their varying and sometimes overlap of functions among the various operational levels of the police, there are different forms of operations and styles employed by the officers in exercise of their functions.
The main operational styles used by the police include the ones used in legalistic departments, the watchmen and service departments. The legalistic style adopts the zero-tolerance approach to serious offences and as such the police arrest serious offenders in a bid to deter crime. Similarly, persons involved in minor infractions of the law are rarely arrested but are usually threatened with sanctions. Those engaged in the watchmen style do not favor the arrest method in their belief that such conduct aggravates the already poor relations between the police and the public. As a result, the officers first seek informal means of settling the dispute. In the service style, the concern is usually of assisting the public and not punishing for breaches of the law. In lieu of arresting offenders, the officers usually refer the offenders to institutions for guidance and assistance especially with regards to minor offences.
Conclusion
Indeed, the law enforcers adopt different strategies in the exercise of their functions. Much depends on the particular roles accorded to each of the levels, and this consequently determines whether there are similarities and dissimilarities in operations and organizational strategies of the respective police officers.
References
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Shafritz, J. M., Ott, S. J., & Jang, Y. S. (2010). Classics of Organization Theory. New York: Cengage Learning.
Siegel , J. R. (2009). Law and Longitude. Tulan Law Review, 84(1), 1-66.
