Police recruiting strategies and practices

Police Recruiting

Just like every other institution in the country, American policing system went through a long period of evolution to finally achieve the shape that it has today. And similar to other laws and institutions in America, even police recruitment methods were heavily borrowed from Britain. In the 19th century or at least for most part of it, American police was shaped after the British policing laws (O'Keefe, 2004). However the one important difference lied in the separation of national and local police bodies. Since in most western countries, police was under the direct control of the national government, it was easier to manage them from one central location and their development was also almost simultaneous. However that was not the case in the United States where every county and state had its own local police department, which is why development of sporadic and departments were created at different times according to the needs of the local communities.

The early police did not have a proper recruitment system. In the 19th century, American police consisted mainly of a night watchman who would patrol the streets at night and a constable who did the same during the day. Since there did not exist a recruitment system or policy, most watchmen were simply ordinary men recruited from the unemployed section of the society. While they were paid for their services, their job was modeled after the traditional night watchman who patrolled the cities as volunteers. But during this time, corruption was rampant and due to a very haphazard system of recruitment and training, cities were ill-managed (O'Keefe, 2004). However the reason this system endured for some time was because of the smaller sizes of communities. As cities grew, this system could no longer work. With rapid industrialization and ensuing increase in the crime rate, police was needed as a more coordinated unit. As cities grew, the scope of its responsibilities and functions expanded. Peter Manning explains what the real essence of policing is:

They partake of myth (counterfactual beliefs with an unexamined status), rely on ritual (repeated sequences of action that refer to themselves), and attempt to manage the appearance of consistent control while sustaining internal compliance and loyalty. Sustaining loyalty and legitimacy is a symbolic function, and a fundamental leadership obligation in policing (2001: 318).

It was due to this growth that local governments in America started developing their own police departments. The proper establishment of departments also helped in reducing the size of police force. Before New York City established a police department in 1853, it had a force consisting of some half million people. However even after the establishment of departments, it was not easy to eradicate corruption from the police force since recruitment was more on partisan basis than on merit. Politicians exercised immense influence on recruitment system and thus corruption was widespread as one newspaper recorded in 1859:

Policemen are appointed to the stations they hold as a reward for partisan services; and they hold their position only while their party is in power. They necessarily have not a single element of independence. They must discharge their official duties so as to gain votes for a coming election, and be the prime movers and often the controlling power of all primary political assemblies ... It is not difficult to perceive that even the honest policeman is not at liberty to see all the violations of the law that he must be literally blind not to observe. (Daily Picayune, 15 October 1859, 1)

Wilbur Miller also notes that in the 19th century when NYPD was still in its infancy, it was under the direct and heavy influence of the elite in the society. It was important in those days to please the middle and upper classes since community's support was considered vital for survival and jobs were given to those who were popular in the neighborhood. People were recruited if they had the support and approval of the middle and upper classes in the society. Political connections almost always played an important role in the recruitment procedure. This was the case not only in New York but in almost every state in the country. In fact corruption was so widespread and since police could serve as a vital instrument, politicians in 1859 actually called for uniting the local police under the direct control of the mayors. In New Orleans for example, the mayor asked for reorganization of forces under his office. The mayor wanted to influence appointments which can be read between the lines from his request: