Foundations of Law Enforcement (CRJU 635)
NOT OFFICIAL UNTIL FIRST DAY OF CLASS – WORK IN PROGRESS
Semester: Fall 2009
Class Time: Wednesday 5:00-8:00 PM
Location: Young 428
Index #: 1332
Office: 307 Adams Street – upstairs 6B
Phone: 540-831-6657 (work) 540-831-6075 (fax)
e-mail: tburke@radford.edu
Homepage: www.radford.edu/~tburke
Office Hours: Wednesday: 2:30-4:30 and Tuesday/Thursday 3:30-4:30
Purpose:
This graduate course is designed to examine critical issues in policing. Topics for discussion may include: the history of policing, professionalism, hiring and promotion, use of force, police stress, civil liability, review boards, police subculture, police-media relations, community policing, police discretion, police strategies, police ethics and corruption, and the future of policing.
Grading and
Attendance:
Students will be graded based upon the following criteria:
· Legal briefs – 1 – 1½ pages (4th Amendment issue) + discussion (10 points)
· Policy paper – no page limit (Using SARA) + discussion (25 points)
· Paper – 5 pages (APA format) – Student will choose a topic during class. Upon completion of the paper, the student will discuss his/her results (note: These papers will be presented and turned in on the same day as due. Depending on class size, two student papers will be presented each class (about 10 minutes each). Date selection will be conducted via a random grab-bag approach. (25 points).
· Group oral presentation (students will lead classroom discussion on an ethical issue in policing) (25 points)
· Reaction paper to the Choir Boys (see below) (15 points)
· Attendance and participation (see below)
Since this is a graduate course, classroom participation is required. The student must be prepared to discuss any and all material assigned, including all reading assignments. Any student not paying attention such as, falling asleep in class (if that is even possible in this course), working on another assignment, failing to pay attention during news briefings, videos, etc., playing with their cell phone, being ill-prepared for classroom discussion, etc., may be counted absent for that day.
Any student missing more than one class will be deducted 10 points for each class missed (unless excused by the instructor).
Tardiness will not be tolerated (2 tardies = one absence). Tardiness is not only rude; it is extremely distracting to fellow students and the instructor.
Other important information: If you bring a cell phone to class, please turn off the ringer (you may wish to put the phone on vibrate). If you receive a call during class, do NOT respond to the message unless it is an emergency that the entire class should be made aware of (example - a campus emergency). Laptops and other computer/recording devices are prohibited during class use (unless it is being used during a group presentation). This will minimize unnecessary distractions that often accompany the use of these electronic devices. You will need to take notes the old fashion way - via handwriting - sorry!
Required Readings:
The
Police in
The Choir Boys by Joseph Wambaugh (1975)
Additional article readings (found at: http://www.radford.edu/~tburke/ReadingList.htm - see below for alternate titles, if applicable)
Cover Charges by
Paul Chevigny
Police Officer's
Lot by Albert Reiss
Learning the Ropes by John Van Maanen
The Omaha Domestic Violence Experiment by Dunford et al.
Dirty Harry Problem by Carl Klockers
The Jewish Patrolman by Arthur Niederhoffer
Patrol Work and
Suspicion, Danger and
Isolation by Jerome Skolnick
Street Lessons by George Kirkham
The Blue Knight by Joseph Wambaugh
Cops and Bobbies by Wilbur Miller
Types and Styles of Police Organization by James Q. Wilson
Police Cynicism by Arthur Niederhoffer
Other articles may be assigned as needed.
TENTATIVE AGENDA:
September 2
·
Introduction and syllabus
·
News briefs
·
How to do case briefs
·
Selection of case briefs
·
Discussion from on-line reading:
Cops and Bobbies by Wilbur Miller
Article (from: Miller,
W. R. (Winter, 1975).
Police Authority in London and New York 1830-1870. Journal
of Social History, pp. 81-101).
September 9
·
News briefs
·
Selection of groups for final project
·
Paper topic selection
·
Discussion for policy paper using SARA – due next class
·
Discussion from the following text book chapters:
1.
The Evolving Strategy
of Policing (p. 5)
2.
The Evolving Strategy
of Police: A Minority View (p. 26)
·
Discussion from on-line readings:
Types and Styles of
Police Organization by James Q. Wilson (from: Wilson, J. Q.
(1968). Varieties
of Police Behavior.
Police Officer’s Lot by
Albert Reiss (from: Reiss, A. J. (1971). The Police and the Public.
New Have, Conn: Yale University
Press, pp. 1-18).
·
Meet
with group members for final project
September 16
·
News
briefs
·
Policy
paper using SARA due with classroom discussion on each paper – hand in paper
for grading
·
Legal
brief presentations and discussion – briefs to be handed in for grading
·
Discussion from the following text book chapters:
1.
The Functions of Police
in Modern Society (p. 92)
2.
The “Causes” of Police
Brutality: Theory and Evidence on Police Use of Force (p. 128)
·
Discussion from on-line reading:
Patrol Work and Police
Territories by Jonathan Rubenstein (from:
Rubenstein, J. (1973).
Patrol Territories and Street Work. City Police. (New York: Ballantine
Books, Chapter 4, pp. 129-152, 173).
·
Meet
with group members for final project
September 23
·
New
briefs
·
Legal
brief presentations and discussion – briefs to be handed in for grading
·
Discussion from the following text book chapters:
1. The Professional Political Model of the Good Policeman (p. 173)
2. The Social Organization of Arrest (p. 184)).
·
Paper
Presentations – hand in research papers
·
Meet
with groups for final project
September 30
·
News
briefs
·
Legal
brief presentations and discussion – briefs to be handed in for grading
·
Discussion from the following text book chapters:
1. The Asshole (p. 197)
2. Administrative Interventions on Police Shooting Discretion: An Empirical Examination (p. 216)
·
Discussion
from on-line articles:
The Blue Knight by Joseph Wambaugh (from: Wambaugh, J. (1973). The
Blue Knight – first chapter –
Learning the
Ropes
by John Van Maanen (from: Van Maanen, J. (Winter, 1973). Observations on the Making
of a Policeman. Human Organization, Vol. 32. No. 4, pp.
407-418).
·
Meet
with groups for final project
October 7
·
News
briefs
·
Legal
brief presentations and discussion – briefs to be handed in for grading
·
Discussion from the following text book chapters:
1. The
2. Effects of Gun Seizures on Gun Violence: “Hot Spots” Patrol in
·
Discussion
from on-line article:
The Omaha Domestic Violence
Experiment by Dunford et al. (from: Dunford, F., Huizinga, D., & Elliott, D
(1990). The Role of Arrest in Domestic
Assault: The Omaha Police Experiment. Criminology, Vol. 28, No. 2, pp.
183-206).
·
Paper
Presentations – hand in research papers
·
Meet
with groups for final project
October 14
·
News
briefs
·
Legal
brief presentations and discussion – briefs to be handed in for grading
·
Discussion
from the following text book chapters:
1 .The Criminal Investigation
Process: A Summary Report (p. 275)
2. The Relationship Between Evidence, Detective Effort, and the Disposition of Burglary and Robbery Investigations (p. 300)
·
Discussion
from on-line articles:
Cover Charges by Paul Chevigny (from: Chevigny, P. (1969). Force, Arrest and Cover
Charges. Police Power – Chapter 8. (
146).
Suspicion, Danger and
Isolation
by Jerome Skolnick
(from: Skolnick, J. (1966). A Sketch of the Policeman’s
Working Personality. Justice Without
Trial – chapter 3).
·
Meet
with groups for final project
October 21
·
News
briefs
·
Legal
brief presentations and discussion – briefs to be handed in for grading
·
Paper
Presentations – hand in research papers
·
Discussion
from the following text book chapter:
Team Policing: Case Studies (p. 314)
Discussion from on-line article:
The Dirty Harry Problem by Carl Klockers
(from: Klockars, C. The
Dirty Harry Problem. (November,
1980). The Annals, pp. 33-47).
·
Meet
with group for final projects
October 28
·
News
briefs
·
Legal
brief presentations and discussion – briefs to be handed in for grading
·
Paper
Presentations – hand in research papers
·
Discussion
from the following text book chapter:
Improving Policing: A
Problem-Oriented Approach (p. 353)
Discussion from on-line articles:
Street Lessons by George Kirkham (from: Kirkham, G. L. (March, 1974). A Professor’s ‘Street Lessons’”. FBI Law
Enforcement Bulletin, pp. 14-22).
The Jewish Patrolman by Arthur Niederhoffer
·
Meet
with group for final projects
November 4 – no class due to
conference
November 11
·
News
briefs
·
Legal
brief presentations and discussion – briefs to be handed in for grading
·
Paper
Presentations – hand in research papers
·
Discussion
from the following text book chapter:
1.
Broken Windows: The Police and
Neighborhood Safety (p. 375)
2. Militarizing Mayberry and
Beyond: Making Sense of American Paramilitary Policing (p. 387)
·
Discussion
from on-line article:
Police Cynicism by Arthur Niederhoffer
·
Meet
with group for final projects
November 18
·
News
briefs
·
Movie:
Fort Apache: The Bronx
·
The Choir Boys paper due – hand in for grading
November 25 – Thanksgiving break
December 2
·
Final
group project presentations
December 9 – last day of class
·
Final
group project presentations
Radford University is committed to the highest standards of academic honesty. Acts of academic dishonesty include plagiarism, cheating, bribery, academic fraud, sabotage of research materials, the sale of academic papers, the purchase of academic papers, and the falsification of records. An individual who engages in these or related activities or who knowingly aids another who engages them, is acting in an academically dishonest manner and will be subject to disciplinary action in accordance with the bylaws and procedures of Radford University (See Student Handbook).
Each member of the academic community is expected to give full, fair, and formal credit to any and all sources that have contributed to the formulation of ideas, methods, interpretations, and findings. The absence of such formal credit is an affirmation that the work is fully the writer’s. The term "sources" includes, but is not limited to, published or unpublished materials, lectures, lecture notes, computer programs, mathematical and other symbolic formulations, course papers, examinations, theses, dissertations, and comments offered in class or informal discussions. The representation that such work of another is the writer’s represents plagiarism.
Care must be taken to document the source of any ideas or arguments. If the actual word of a source is used, it must appear within quotation marks. In cases that are unclear, the writer must take due care to avoid plagiarism.
The source should be cited whenever:
Since the intent to deceive is not a necessary element (strict liability), careful note taking and record keeping is essential in order to avoid plagiarism. In other words, it is like being a little bit pregnant (you either are or you are not). One cannot have "accidental/unintentional" plagiarism!
Students should consult members of the faculty for clarification of the definition and substance of this policy on plagiarism as it applies to their particular discipline.
(Source:
STUDENT ACCOMMODATIONS
Students seeking accommodations are required to
provide documentation from an appropriate health care provider or professional.
The documentation must outline the functional limitations that substantially
limit a major life activity. Providers are also asked to provide recommendations
for reasonable accommodations based upon the disability. However,
Having a diagnosis is not the same as having a disability!
If you are seeking classroom accommodations under the Americans with Disabilities Act, you are required to register with the Disability Resource Office (DRO). The DRO is located in Tyler Hall, Room 64; telephone number 831-6350; email address dro@radford.edu. To receive academic accommodations for this class, please obtain the proper DRO forms and meet with me no later than the second week of class during the regular semester session (or the second day of the class during the summer session.
Writing/Reading
Help:
The Learning Assistance and Resource Center (LARC), located in 126 Walker Hall, is open to all students Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. Certified, trained tutors provide help with basic study skills, writing, reading, and content-specific material. An appointment is necessary and can be made by stopping by Walker 126, calling 831-7704, or IMing “rularcappt”.