The federalization of local law enforcement
Though a rapid transition to a federalized police force is unlikely here in America, an incremental shift to greater federal control is already occurring
Jan 3, 2011
The United States has more than 18,000 police departments — far more than any other nation. Each of the 50 states has its own Peace Officer Standards and Training board and officer / deputy certification criteria for more than 700,000 officers nationwide. Over the next several decades it’s likely that a more federalized policing model will replace this decentralized approach.
Critics have argued for years that decentralized police administration fosters inherently poor-quality policing, tolerates racial bias, and makes it especially difficult to monitor and verify training and certification requirements across states. For many critics, federal intervention remains the remedy of choice. The current administration in Washington appears to agree.
All Law Enforcement is Local Will Be Federal
In his now-famous July 2009 press conference, President Obama responded to a question about the arrest of Harvard Professor Henry Gates by stating his belief that the “Cambridge police acted stupidly.” He went on to note our nation’s “long history” of disproportionate police stops and arrests of blacks and Latinos, “often times for no cause.”
He then made a comment that drew less attention. He said that we — where the meaning of ‘we’ is federal officials — should work with “local law enforcement to improve policing techniques to eliminate bias.”
Remarks from Attorney General Eric Holder regarding Arizona’s new immigration control law reflect the Administration’s belief that local law enforcement officers routinely violate federal civil rights standards with little regard for ethics or the Constitution.
As American as Apple Pie
These attitudes are tethered to subtle pressure to federalize police governance. The courts, federal grant dollars, and impending nationwide unionization
will contribute to the erosion of local control of police authority.
The prevailing tool in the federal effort to rein in local police remains litigation, a process that some would argue is as “American as apple pie.” The courts serve as a Constitutional filter that directly influences police tactics, techniques, and procedures.
Nothing screams national standardization more than the use of force and how that affects individual liberties.1 Any one of the more than 600 law enforcement training academies would be negligent if faculty did not cover Tennessee v. Garner, Graham v. Connor, Saucier v. Katz, and Brosseau v. Haugen.
However, other forms of federal litigation have also emerged. In 1994, Congress granted the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division the authority to bring civil lawsuits against police agencies that have demonstrated a “pattern or practice” that results in illegal or unconstitutional behavior. Both Democratic and Republican administrations have used this mechanism to force compliance with federal authority and Constitutional mandates...
Read more:
http://www.policeone.com/patrol-issues/articles/3139476-The-federalization-of-local-law-enforcement/
Got a complaint on how a federal police officer handled your traffic stop? Take it up with the bureaucracy in Washington D.C. instead of your local city council.
Support your local police and keep them independent!
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