Citizen oversight in the United States and Canada: an overview

Police misconduct and corruption have the potential to erode public trust and confidence in both policing and government agencies. Repeat accounts of law enforcement officials engaging in deviant acts have prompted greater citizen involvement in the review of officer behavior. However, citizen overs...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Police practice & research 2013-04, Vol.14 (2), p.104-116
Main Authors: Ferdik, Frank V., Rojek, Jeff, Alpert, Geoffrey P.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Accountability
Budgetary restrictions
Canada
citizen oversight
Citizen Participation
Citizens
civilian review board
Corruption
Government Agencies
Government policy
History
Investigations (Law Enforcement)
Law enforcement
Official misconduct
Police
Police corruption
police misconduct and corruption
Public Support
Surveillance
Trust
U.S.A
United States
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Summary:Police misconduct and corruption have the potential to erode public trust and confidence in both policing and government agencies. Repeat accounts of law enforcement officials engaging in deviant acts have prompted greater citizen involvement in the review of officer behavior. However, citizen oversight has had a contentious history in both the USA and Canada, with most challenges expressed by law enforcement officers whose behavior often comes under scrutiny. This article provides a review of how citizen oversight has evolved in both nations, as well as an examination of contemporary models of this accountability practice. This review reveals that operational differences exist between the different oversight models and that external factors such as political, police, and public support, as well as budgetary considerations also impact the procedural outcomes of citizen oversight. We conclude with a discussion of the future prospects and challenges to citizen oversight of the police.
ISSN:1561-4263
1477-271X
DOI:10.1080/15614263.2013.767089