Principled Policing Part One
| Date | 01 January 2000 |
| Published date | 01 January 2000 |
| DOI | 10.1177/0032258X0007300107 |
| Subject Matter | Article |
JOHN ALDERSON,
eBE,
QPM
Formerly: Chief Constable
of
Devon &Cornwall; Commandant
of
NPT, Bramshil/;
and
Assistant Commissioner, New Scotland
Yard
PRINCIPLED POLICING
Part One
Introduction
We would all wish to live in societies which are so self-policing that
coercive policing by the state would not be necessary, but this Utopia
has to remain a dream.
If
we are to have policing arrangements, they
must be of the best; which does not mean the most economically
expensive. The best policing must begin with its principles.
In some countries a citizen may find fundamentals of policing
mentioned in written constitutions, in others he may not. Some, as in the
United Kingdom, may have to begin their search for principles in the
ordinary law of the land. Principled policing should be of such a nature
that it applies to all peoples in all societies, since it concerns
reconciliation of the maintenance of order with the protection of
freedom, both of which are in a permanent state of conflict. Too much
of one means less of the other.
Striking the balance between these phenomena is the true goal of the
best policing.
Societies in which principled policing operates, it is contended,
would be less likely to suffer from policing injustices, than they would
where policing is driven by political opportunism, professional caprice,
or just bad law. There has to be a robust moral objectivity in the way in
which policing operates if it is to avoid the worst misuses and abuses of
power. To seek rationalization of the police mission, and to give it
coherence and form in both theory and practice, has always presented a
personal challenge. When leading and managing a major police
organization by what is commonly called the
'seat
of the pants', a good
deal of luck or overweening power is required to avoid the worst results
of such professional sin. On the other hand consistency demands that
command of policing and formation of policies be based on some
coherent formula or framework. Such a formula provides not only
consistency and objectivity, but is also available to others far their
understanding of the rationale of behaviour behind policy making. My
own tried and tested formula was as follows:
1. Philosophy - through cogitation and reasoning to acquire myself an
understanding of the police idea.
2. Ideas - the product of 1 above.
42 The Police Journal January 2000
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