Discussion Questions (200-300 words each question with at least 2 references each)
1. What do people expect to happen when they call the police? How far should police go in resolving a dispute - should police officers tell a person to leave the premises, even when there is no legal basis for doing so? What are some alternatives and what are some consequences if police officers are not "creative"?
2. Why is a domestic assault treated much more seriously than an assault on a stranger or friend? Is mandatory arrest a necessary and effective policy? How do police officers determine which person to arrest when both parties display injuries? Should counselors be sent to domestic disputes along with police officers?
3. Do law enforcement agencies actually control crime through patrol, investigation and arrest, or is there some other strategy they could better use? If so, what would that strategy be? Should law enforcement agency executives and other agency members be evaluated (at least in part) by how much crime has increased or decreased during their tenure, and by how they solve it with arrest and conviction? If so, should the Uniform Crime Reports (UCRs) or the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) be used as part of this evaluation?
4. Check out recent clearance rate data on the Web. Check the most recent FBI UCR data. Have national clearance rates changed for any crimes? How does this clearance rate data compare to your beliefs in answering the question: "Do law enforcement agencies control crime?"
5. Who are "career criminals"? Should law enforcement agencies focus on individuals identified as such? Is there a question of discrimination here? What if focusing on the crimes of certain offenders means that other crimes (including serious ones committed by other offenders) do not receive police attention? Should gang members be considered career criminals? What should law enforcement be doing to address criminal street gangs?