Category: Policing in America

Police Reform in America

George Noga

MLLG’s plan for reforming the police in the wake of the George Floyd tragedy

 

Police Reform in America

By: George Noga – June 14, 2020

This is a special posting; the one originally scheduled has been moved to Wednesday. MLLG previously has written about policing; you may view these posts on our website: www.mllg.us. On 9/25/16 we posted Crisis of Confidence in Police and on 3/12/17 we posted Restoring Confidence in Police. Those posts still are valid.

There are cris de coeur to abolish or defund the police in the wake of the George Floyd tragedy. Major reform is indeed necessary; police have transmogrified into threatening figures, particularly to minorities, the underclass and the young. They wall themselves off from the communities they serve. They have an us-versus-them attitude, which is part of a culture that dictates they protect each other over serving the public.

MLLG Plan for Police Reform

Privatize the police: Communities can hire private for profit security firms. Such firms would hire the good officers from former police departments. The competition would increase the quality of law enforcement and it would be easy for the security firms to fire any officers who misbehave or who rack up citizen complaints.

Abolish qualified immunity: Currently police and government officials have qualified immunity and can’t be held legally accountable when they violate citizen rights – even in the most egregious manner. This must be ended.

Reform/Abolish LEOBOR: Many states have enacted a Law Enforcement Officer Bill of Rights which gives police many rights, privileges and protections not enjoyed by ordinary citizens. LEOBOR makes it incredibly difficult to hold police accountable.

Eliminate police unions: Unions make it virtually impossible to fire a rogue police officer. Even ones who are fired for gross misconduct usually are quietly reinstated months later with full back pay. Progressive politicians get princely contributions and backing from public unions. It is highly doubtful politicians’ social justice concerns will overcome their addiction to the torrent of union money and votes.

Self evaluation: Following Vietnam, the military was in shambles. Like police today, they were poorly perceived by the public. They did a critical self examination and transformed themselves into a highly trusted institution. Police need to do the same.

West Point for police: We should establish a national police academy to increase professionalism. Many states now require more training for beauticians than for police.

Embrace citizen review boards: All jurisdictions should have non political police review boards composed of a cross section of citizens. Police should embrace such boards and use them to learn from the community and to build trust.

Clean up their act: Police must stop conduct that undermines public confidence. They must end asset forfeitures and policing for profit. Use SWAT teams and military style equipment only when absolutely necessary. Quit telephone solicitations which are unprofessional and grate on the public. Stop the practice of testilying, i.e. police perjury. Don’t link advancement to money or arrests. Finally, improve the atmospherics by eliminating garish uniform decorations befitting the potentate of a banana republic.

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Implementation of the plan outlined above would go a long way to transforming the police into a trusted institution. It is all perfectly logical. But it would be wise not to expect too much in the way of reform as that is the nature of politics. Alas, there will be much sound and fury signifying nothing and, in the end, little will have changed.

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Watch for our next post on Wednesday about conscientious acquittal.

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More Liberty Less Government – mllg@cfl.rr.com – www.mllg.us

Restoring Confidence in Police

George Noga
Confidence in police began to decline decades ago and now is low across all demographic groups. This post presents a practical plan to restore confidence.
Restoring Confidence in Police
By: George Noga – March 12, 2017

      Our September 25th post Crisis of Confidence in Police (online at www.mllg.us) was highly critical of policing in America and we received push back from some readers. When we criticize, we also like to proffer solutions; hence, we present this 10-part plan – in rough order of importance – for restoring confidence in police.

1. Engage in self-evaluation. In the post Vietnam era, the military was in shambles. Like the police today, they were poorly perceived by the public. They took a critical look at themselves and transformed the military into the most trusted institution in America. Police must perform a similar realistic and critical review to understand why there is such a wide trust gap and then take all the necessary corrective actions.
2. Create a West Point for police. In another lesson from the military, a national police service academy should be created exactly like the others. This would attract many of the best and brightest into policing and provide leadership and professionalism.
3. Enhance professionalism at all levels. Advancement to sergeant, lieutenant, captain and senior levels should require further education and training. This is another lesson from the military, where advancement to each rank requires professional development. To advance to a senior police command position should require graduation from something akin to the War College, required for all military general officers. Under no circumstances should advancement ever be linked to the number of tickets or arrests.
4. Embrace citizen review boards. All jurisdictions should have non-political review boards and then work closely with them to build better community relations. Such boards should not be viewed as inimical but rather as a valuable resource. Use every possible opportunity to learn from community leaders and to build trust.
5. Abolish the us-versus-them attitude. Police form insular cliques, walling themselves off from their communities. They protect each other, even against accusations of wrongdoing, with a blue wall of silence. In the military there is no green wall of silence despite combat situations. Duty to the public always must come before police loyalty to their buddies. Until that happens, police never will earn the full respect of the public. This means that the practice of testilying (police lying under oath) also must end.
6. Use SWAT teams only when absolutely necessary. Currently SWAT teams are used over 50,000 times a year – sometimes to serve routine subpoenas. Such lethal force should be used sparingly and only when deemed absolutely essential.
7. Police should be non-union. It is inconceivable the military would be unionized, go on strikes, engage in job actions or tomfoolery regarding pay and benefits such as overtime spiking. This same paradigm should apply to police. Public unions create enormous resentment among private sector workers, only 6% of whom are unionized.
8. Abolish civil asset forfeiture. This is an incredibly sleazy, self-serving, extra legal practice that likely is unconstitutional. It reflects incredibly poorly on police, creates widespread resentment with the pubic and can’t be terminated soon enough.
9. Clean up the atmospherics. As part of heightened police professionalism, abolish telephone solicitations which grate on the public. Uniforms should be basic, no-frills with high ranking officers wearing civilian clothes; save the five-star general uniforms for rare formal occasions. At public events be modest and avoid self aggrandizement.
10. Use broken-window policing. Implement legal and appropriate measures proven most effective at preventing and lowering crime, regardless of any political pressure to the contrary. This means fully embracing broken-window policing.

   The erosion of confidence in the police to its present low level happened over decades and has myriad causes. The ten-part plan presented herein will not be quick or easy but it will restore the public’s confidence in the police to protect and to serve!

On March 17th MLLG begins its five-part series about climate change 

Crisis of Confidence in Police

George Noga
Confidence in police has cratered among Americans of all ages, education levels,
incomes, races and particularly the young and minorities. What went so wrong?
Crisis of Confidence in Police
By: George Noga – September 25, 2016

     Everyone is familiar with highly publicized and racially charged police shootings in Baton Rouge, St. Paul, New York, Milwaukee and Ferguson. As a result, policing in America is a hot-button issue in the 2016 election. However, the loss of confidence in police began decades ago and has myriad causes. In this post, we identify the top ten reasons (in rough order of importance) underlying the crisis of confidence in police. The changes have been gradual but the end result is plainly and painfully manifest.

1. Police have transmogrified from avuncular figures to threatening ones; their attitude from helpful to intimidating. They form tight cliques, becoming insular and walling themselves off from the communities they serve. They have an us-versus-them attitude and protect each other at all costs and even when they are plainly in the wrong.

2. Policing is nowhere near the most dangerous job in America; it ranks 15th behind loggers, fishermen, pilots, roofers, refuse collectors, farmers, iron/steel workers, truck drivers, electricians, taxi drivers, construction, landscape, maintenance and miners. The homicide rate for police is 30% less than for an average male. We appreciate that police put themselves in harm’s way for us, but perspective about the danger is needed.

3. Routine use of SWAT teams (50,000 raids per year), military equipment and tasers is out of control. A SWAT team is not needed to serve a subpoena. The police have become too militarized and treat civilians more like enemy combatants.

4. Unionization and threats of strikes and other tactics are against public policy. Police compensation and benefits (often boosted by outlandish overtime spiking) create enormous resentment with private sector workers, of whom only 6% are unionized.

5. Police gorge themselves on civil asset forfeitures. They seize property from hapless victims even when there is no crime or arrest and use the proceeds to buy fancy toys.

6. Testilying (police perjury under oath) is commonplace as can be attested to by any lawyer who routinely practices in criminal court – so routine it has its own name.

7. Telephone solicitations (often aggressive) on behalf of police benevolent groups are ubiquitous but net police only pennies on the dollar. This grates on the public inasmuch as other professions don’t engage in such activity, policing is 15th on the dangerous jobs list and police already are well compensated via public sector unionization.

8. Policing is about money and arrests. Advancement is linked to the amount of money generated and the number of arrests made. Massive police ticketing operations are organized solely for the convenience of police to raise money; the public be damned.

9. The atmospherics have become gaudy. High ranking officers, even of small town police departments, are bedecked as 5-star generals with garish decorations befitting the potentate of a banana republic. Chiefs should wear civilian clothes as in the past.

10. Press conferences after police events have become love-fests for law enforcement. Following the Orlando tragedy, city police, county police, state police, FBI, state attorney, DOJ and ATF spent an eternity heaping praise on one another for cooperation and professionalism before they answered a single question. More modesty is needed.

     Loss of confidence in police has been gradual and has many antecedents. There are however private alternatives to unionized, militarized, asset-seizing and testilying police. There is a strong negative correlation between crime and economic freedom as free markets enable people to put their passions into business. Restrictions on freedom, such as minimum wage laws, that keep minorities from work are particularly harmful.

     A big part of the solution therefore lies in more liberty and less government. More liberty for poor, minority, inner city youth and more free markets. Less government as in fewer police, an end to the failed war on drugs and more private policing. Finally, each community should have an independent citizen police review board with ample powers to oversee the police and to ensure policing reflects their community’s values.

The next post in our election series is titled “Fake Solutions to Fake Problems”.