The Queen's Police Gold Medal Essay Competition
| Author | P. D. Knights |
| Published date | 01 December 1966 |
| Date | 01 December 1966 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1177/0032258X6603901207 |
| Subject Matter | Article |
The
Queen's
Police
Gold
Medal
Essay
Competition
P.
D.
KNIGHTS
Assistant Chief Constable of Birmingham
We congratulate Mr. Knights on winning the
Queen's Gold Medal for the following essay
POLICE
IN
A
CHANGING
SOCIETY
Since professional Police Forces came into being
their problems and responsibilities have altered
considerably. Is the development
of
the Service
based too much on tradition and should there be
a drastic rethinking
of
the Police idea?
"The
police in this country are the instrument
for
enforcing the rule
of law; they are the means by which civilized society maintains order,
that people may live safely in their homes and go freely about their
lawful business."
Royal
Commission on the Police 19621
Ever since civilization began it has been recognized that if people
are to live harmoniously together they must have some common
rules of conduct covering their relationship one with the other,
and some method of applying sanctions to those who offend
against these rules. This is as true of nations as it is of individual
families. Throughout the ages, therefore, communities have been
at pains to fashion a code of laws and a system of enforcement
acceptable to their particular circumstances, and the extent to
which their civilization has developed has been a measure of their
success in achieving this.
Unfortunately the particular circumstances affecting the code of
laws and the system of enforcement which are acceptable in a
society change as the community develops, and what may be ac-
ceptable in one form of society at one point in time may not be
acceptable in another society, or even in the same society at some
other time. The result is that at varying intervals changes have
to be made in the code and possibly in the instrument used to
enforce it.
Many factors are involved in the development of a community,
but probably the most important is technical knowledge, particu-
larly as applied to industry. In this country marked change can
be seen in our society from about A.D. 1000. As the craftsmen
and merchants became more expert they were able to break away
from the old feudal system and towns began to develop; by about
December 1966 608
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