Police Activities, Operations,
and Challenges
CHAPTER OVERVIEW
Police agencies balance three functions: law enforcement, order maintenance, and providing needed
services. Where, when, and how police are deployed when carrying out these functions will influence
the relationship between the public and the police. This chapter (similar to Chapter 5) emphasizes
that most duties that police carry out are not related to enforcing the law. In spite of this, how they
are evaluated is still related to crime-fighting measures (response time, arrest rates, clearance rates
and crime rates). Many researchers have argued that other measures of police effectiveness should
be employed (e.g., leadership abilities, creative problem solving skills, and communications of officers). These alternative measures consider the police and the public’s relationships. Understanding
and improving relationships with the public and using evidence-based practices are key both the
safety of the public and the preservation of the legitimacy of the police and the justice system.
Due to recent events in both Canada and the US, and the fact that police militarization contributes
to the mindset that a society’s police are at war with its citizens, our positive feelings towards police
have declined. Police, too, have developed an “us versus them” mindset, which can lead to cautious
inaction on the part of police officers to critically examine its operations (which, in turn, inhibits innovation). This occupational police subculture can lead to a resistance to change on the part of most
police officers. Increasing external accountability and oversight will help change the nature of the
police subculture in order to help all officers and civilian employees feel safe at work. The downside
of all of this transparency is our mistrust of the police. In order to improve public support of police,
policing in this century will need to be reinvented or reimagined in light of the police’s changing
roles.
Exploring Criminal Justice in Canada
© Oxford University Press, 2017
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
In this chapter, the student should be able to:
 Understand how police are deployed.
 Discuss some of the controversies surrounding police work.
 Identify the subculture of the police and explain why it is problematic.
 Discuss the importance of oversight and accountability in policing.
 Explain various operational police activities.
 Discuss the importance and challenges of police independency.
 State how policing is evaluated.
 Recognize the expansion of private policing in Canada.
KEY TERMS
Dark figure of police misconduct: Police misconduct that occurs but is never reported or counted
(p. 159).
Field training officers: Experienced police officers who train and mentor new police officers during their first months on the job (p. 155).
Occupational culture: Is a set of attitudes, beliefs, and values associated with a profession and the
police have a distinctive culture that can contribute to a number of negative outcomes including how
peers and members of the public are treated (p. 168).
Paramilitary organizations: Organized along military lines and have a chain of command where
lines of authority are clearly defined by the organization (p. 149).
Police subculture: A set of informal rules and expectations that shape police attitudes, values, and
behaviours (p. 148).
Problem-oriented policing: An approach to policing that incorporates theories of crime and research on policing in order to reduce crime (p. 163).
FURTHER READINGS
Bailey, Ian and Kyle Harland. (December 1, 2007). “Who Polices the Police? Who Should?” in
The Globe and Mail. S3. http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/who-polices-thepolice-who-should/article698761/?page=all
This article looks at the oversight of police and lists the RCMP’s role across Canada.
Bud, Thomas K. (2016). “The Rise and Risks of Police Body-Worn Cameras in Canada” in
Surveillance & Society, 14(1): pp. 117–121.
This piece explores the increased presence of body-worn camera in police forces across Canada.
Clark, Doug. (2010). Thin Bruised Line: The Imminent Threat to Police and Public Safety.
Toronto: Key Porter Books.
Clark explains why police work in Canada is becoming harder in this thoroughly-researched volume.
Exploring Criminal Justice in Canada
© Oxford University Press, 2017
Dowler, Kenneth and Valerie Zawilski. (2007). “Public Perceptions of Police Misconduct
and Discrimination: Examining the Impact of Media Consumption” in Journal of Criminal
Justice, 35(2): pp.193–203.
In this study, the authors explore the impact of media consumption on citizen attitudes toward police
misconduct and discrimination.
Ferdik, Frank V., Jeff Rojek, Geoffrey P. Alpert. (April 2013). “Citizen Oversight in the United
States and Canada: An Overview” in Police Practice & Research, 14(2): pp.104–116.
This article provides a review of how citizen oversight has evolved in the US and Canada, as well as
an examination of contemporary models of this accountability practice.
Gee, Marcus. (November 10, 2015). “Will Carding Crackdown Tie Officers’ Hands?” in The
Globe and Mail. A10. http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/toronto/will-ontarioscarding-crackdown-tie-police-officers-hands/article27183392/
This brief news article explores Ontario’s carding crackdown and the concerns of police unions.
Macdonald, Nancy and Charlie Gillis. (2015). “Inside the RCMP’s Biggest Crisis” in Maclean’s, 128(9): pp. 16–21. (3/9/2015). http://www.macleans.ca/society/inside-the-rcmpsbiggest-crisis/
This Maclean’s report explores the sexual harassment crisis inside the RCMP.
Sandhu, Ajay. (2016). “Camera-Friendly Policing: How the Police Respond to Cameras and
Photographers” in Surveillance & Society, 14(1): pp.78–89.
This paper argues that police might be learning to adapt to cameras by engage in what the author
calls “camera-friendly policing.”
Sukkau, Elizabeth and Joan Brockman. (January 2015). “‘Boys, You Should All Be In Hollywood’: Perspectives on the Mr. Big Investigative Technique” in University of British Columbia Law Review, 48(1): pp.47–77.
This paper examines students’ knowledge and perspectives of the Mr. Big technique (which involves
undercover police officers pretending to be part of a criminal organization and engaging a targeted
suspect to elicit information or a confession for a suspected crime) and compares its findings with
some of the same questions asked of the public in British Columbia in a 2008 survey commissioned
by the RCMP.
Exploring Criminal Justice in Canada
© Oxford University Press, 2017