American Policing The Black And Blue Uniforms And The...

Introduction When you think of American Policing the first thing that comes to mind is men in the black and blue uniforms and the people who protect us every day and maintain order among society. But from what you see now, behind it is a long history of troublesome problems and bright spots. When it comes to the history of American policing you have to go farther back then you think. The definition of policing is: having the duty of maintaining law and order in or for an area (Police definition,†). The reason I like to look so far back is because I strongly believe if you want to understand where you are going you first have to see where you have come from. You must do this in order to see how to move forward, improve, and†¦show more content†¦The initial policing was provided by local officials. It wasn t until 1789 when the U.S Marshals Service was created followed by other federal services. The first actual police department that was created was in Philadelphia in 1 751 followed by Richmond Virginia in 1807 and Boston in 1838. The way the first police departments were set up post-civil war era was a military style set up with ranks and levels to what officer authorities are (police, 2013). In that sense not much has changed except some styles of rank of officers as well as some of the ways some situations and how they are dealt with. The biggest change that has happened is actual changing of laws and constitutions and how they are enforced by officers. The purpose of policing is to prevent crime and to maintain order while having the trust of the community in order to correctly apply the laws. In the beginning this was not always the case. The issue that presented itself back in that time was racism and the way the police department and officers would conduct the laws and enforce them when an African American would commit them and the severity of the punishment. On the other side is when a white person would committed a crime against a black pe rson, the police had a hard time deciding whether to prosecute the white person or to let him go, which at that time it was socially acceptable and nobody thought anything of it. This was seen throughout American police history and I feel was the biggest issue in