is the misuse of police authority for personal gain. Examples include extortion
(for example, demanding money for not writing traffic tickets) and bribery
(for example, accepting money in exchange for not enforcing the law).
The costs of police corruption
Police corruption
is the misuse of police authority for personal gain. Examples include extortion
(for example, demanding money for not writing traffic tickets) and bribery
(for example, accepting money in exchange for not enforcing the law).
The costs of police corruption
Police corruption carries high costs. First, a corrupt act is a crime. Second, police corruption detracts from the integrity of the police and tarnishes the public image of law enforcement. Third, corruption protects other criminal activity such as drug dealing and prostitution. Protected criminal activities are often lucrative sources of income for organized crime.
The causes of police corruption
According to the rotten apple theory, corruption is the work of a few, dishonest, immoral police officers. Experts dismiss this theory because it fails to explain why so many corrupt officers become concentrated in some police organizations but not others. Another explanation pinpoints U.S. society's use of the criminal law to enforce morality. Unenforceable laws governing moral standards promote corruption because they provide criminal organizations with a financial interest in undermining law enforcement. Narcotic corruption, for example, is an inevitable consequence of drug enforcement. Providers of these illegal goods and service use part of their profits to bribe the police in order to ensure the continuation of criminal enterprises.
Rooting out police corruption
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