This document discusses police corruption, defining it as misconduct by police officers involving misuse of authority for personal gain. It outlines the costs of corruption, which include undermining the criminal justice system and public confidence in police. Various types of corruption are described, such as accepting gratuities or bribes, theft, and brutality. Theories for why corruption occurs include issues with individual officers, police subculture, lack of oversight and management failures. Controlling corruption requires strong internal policies and leadership within police departments, as well as external oversight and accountability. However, completely eliminating corruption may not be possible.

1. Police in America
Chapter Thirteen
Police Corruption
McGraw-Hill
© 2013 McGraw-Hill Companies. All Rights Reserved.

2. A Definition of Police Corruption

Police Corruption: A form of misconduct or deviant
behavior by police officers that involves the misuse of
authority in a manner designed to produce personal gain
for themselves or for others.

Occupational Deviance: Criminal and improper noncriminal behavior committed during the course of normal
work activities or under the guise of a police officer’s
authority.

Abuse of Authority: An action by a police officer “that
tends to injure, insult, trespass upon human dignity…
and/or violate an inherent legal right” of a citizen.
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3. The Costs of Police Corruption

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A corrupt act by a police officer is a criminal act.
Corruption usually protects other criminal acts.
Corruption undermines the effectiveness of the
criminal justice system.
Corruption undermines the professionalism of a
police department.
Corruption is a secret tax adding up to millions of
dollars a year.
Corruption undermines public confidence in the
police.
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4. Types of Corruption

Gratuities
 Free meals, dry cleaning,
or discounts
 Receive or not receive?
 Why would business
persons give gratuities?
 Grass eaters” vs. “meat
eaters”

Bribes
 For not enforcing the law
 Selling information
 Protecting illegal
activities

Theft and burglary
 Taking money from
people arrested for
drunkenness
 Stealing property,
money, or drugs

Corruption and Brutality
 Officers bust drug
dealers, steal their drugs
or money and then sold
drugs to other dealers or
officers
 “Rite of initiation”
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5. Corruption and Brutality

Brutality - new form of
corruption that
emerged in the 1980s
and 1990s
 New York City
 Los Angeles
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6. Levels of corruption

Type I: Rotten
apples and rotten
pockets
 Rotten apples - Only a
few corrupt officers
 Rotten pocket - a few
corrupt officers
cooperating with one
another

Type II: Pervasive
unorganized
corruption
 Majority of personnel are
corrupt but have little
relationship to each
other.

Type III: Pervasive
organized corruption
 Penetrates higher levels
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7. Theories of Police Corruption

Individual-officer
explanations
 Rotten apples

The criminal law

 Corruption pervades other parts of
government

Culture conflict
 Conflict over the goals of
the system
Neighborhood Explanations
 Organizations foster corruption
 High levels of poverty, racial
diversity, population turnover, and
low levels of informal social control
may lead to police misconduct
 Regulation of activities that
people regard as legitimate
or matters of private choice
 Regulatory ordinances

Local Political Culture

Nature of police work
 Opportunity
 Low visibility
 Officer attitude
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8. Theories of Police Corruption Cont.

Police organization
 Quality of management and supervision
 Exists because the department tolerates it

Police subculture
 Initiates officers into corrupt activities
 Covers up corrupt activities
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9. Becoming Corrupt

The Moral Careers of Individual Officers according to
Sherman:
 Police officers are often all honest at the outset of their careers
 Moral career begins with minor gratuities
• Peer pressure involved
• Small bribes like free meals
 Second and third phases involve regulatory offenses
• Officer more likely to engage in these activities if he/she knows other
officers are doing it
 Fourth, fifth and sixth phases involve more serious offenses
• Accepting large amounts of money
• Protection of certain activities such as prostitution and drug trafficking

Corrupting Organizations
 Initial stage involves individuals or isolated groups
 Second and third stages involve all officers becoming corrupt
 Final stages involve “pervasive organized corruption:
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10. Controlling Corruption
 Internal Mechanisms
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Attitude of Chief of Police
Rules and Regulations
Internal Affairs investigations
• Parting the “blue curtain”
• Proactive Integrity tests



Effective Supervision
Rewarding good officers
Personnel Recruitment
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11. Controlling Corruption
 External Mechanisms
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Special investigations
Criminal prosecution
Mobilizing public opinion
Altering the external environment
 Media
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12. The Limits of Anticorruption Efforts
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Anechiarico and Jacobs argue anticorruption
efforts have been ineffective and have made
government itself ineffective
Corruption persists in the NYC police
department despite special investigations every
20 years
However, NYC is unique and other police
departments in other cities have been
successful in reducing corruption
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