Ethical Considerations in Law Enforcement: A Case Study

Introduction

Law enforcement demands a higher ethical standard, as it is often said than that of any other profession. A police career is one that calls for the greatest dedication in light of making the right decisions. Thus, it is undeniable and understandable that there is a huge degree of expectation upon officers. In striving of making a difference, police officers are expected to work together in order to meet public demands. As a result, hard choices must be made under any circumstances should in ensuring the right thing is done. Other situations prove difficult for officers where a good example is dealing with inmates who have mental illnesses.

The paper below will outline the theories of ethics violated in Mr. Echevarria's case study will be discussed as well as steps to be taken to promote ethical behavior. The resistance anticipated from the action plan will be highlighted and ways to overcome it will be provided. Ultimately, the paper will determine whether it is ethical to house inmates with mental disorders in jail.

Conditions of Jails and Prisons

By no means should prison conditions serve as an additional punishment. Rather, inmates should be sentenced as a sanction for holding an individual accountable for their actions and at the same time protecting society. In as much as prison sentences deprive a person of some of their rights such as freedom of movement, inmates should retain their fundamental freedoms and human rights. Unfortunately, this has not been the case as most prisons do not even meet the basic standards. Prison staff members have the notion that harsh treatment is a legit way of dealing with inmates (Ugelvik, 2016). Inmates' lives are put at risk when exposed to other conditions such as overcrowding, sexual abuse, violence, and discrimination based on gender, sex race identity, or disability.

Living conditions in prisons and jails are the major key factors that determine a prisoner's dignity and self-esteem. Prisoners exposed to humane detention conditions are usually responsive to rehabilitative programs (Wener, 2018). Those who undergo mistreatment and punitive conditions, on the other hand, are likely to get worse in both physical and mental health. Research in the last two decades has proliferated yet lacks to address the variation across rehabilitation facilities in conditions of confinement and how they shape inmates, ex-inmates, their families, and communities (Wildeman, Fitzpatrick & Goldman, 2018).

Inmate Rights

Jail or prison curtails a person's rights but that does not imply that even the most hardened criminal should be deprived of their rights. Depending on where a person is incarcerated and their stage of the criminal process, the rights may vary. Specific standards that address the needs of particular groups of inmates, such as children, women, and those with mental disorders should be observed. Upholding humane conditions in prisons in very key in establishing fair and effective justice systems (Outlaw et al., 2019). Under the Eight Amendment of the U.S., inmates have the right to be free from inhumane treatment such as beheading, disemboweling, public dissection, and so on.

Every prisoner is entitled to receive medical care and mental treatment. In other words, they should be given the treatment to keep them reasonably comfortable. People, unfortunately, are more likely to confront law enforcement officers than get medical assistance. For instance, mental illness has become prevalent in the U.S. that prisons are now being called 'the new asylums'. More inmates are being held in Cook County, Los Angeles County, and New York Riker's Jails are holding more inmates with mental illness than any psychiatric hospital in the country (Callahan & Noether, 2018). Most of these individuals are not violent criminals and others serve short sentences for minor crimes. Yet, many do not receive the treatment they need and end up getting worse.

Evaluation of the Incidence and Theories of Ethics Violated

Suicide in prisons, an international problem is not a new thing as the rates are higher than in the general population. Most of these cases suggest factors such as substance misuse, psychiatric illness, and repetitive self-harm. Inmates all along have been recognized as a vulnerable population at risk of suicide. Although research shows that the individual character of a person is a high determinant, other factors include the environment and individual-level-risk factors. Studies have also shown that negative staff-prisoner relationships, low staff engagement, and high prison population are other explanations (Fazel, Ramesh & Hawton, 2017).

Mr. Echevarria's case study is a clear illustration of the mistreatment and inhumane conditions of the prison. Unsanitary conditions and raw sewage spilling out of the toilets are a violation of the inmates' rights to fresh air and sanitary condition. Moreover, the officer in charge negligently gave full packets to the inmates who mostly are on the verge of committing suicide, especially in such an environment. Ingesting diluted let alone undiluted detergent poses a health threat to a human being, an option anyone considering committing suicide to go for, especially in prison.

In addition, the prisoner was deprived of medical assistance even after bleeding for hours and being in tremendous pain. Even after being requested to provide medical assistance, the captain did not see it worthwhile to look into the matter up to the point of death. The officer was no exception as he did not act in accordance with the oath of protecting, upholding, and defending the Constitution. Even though the situation where his captain refused to grant permission for the inmate proved to be difficult, it violated police ethics and decision-making. By assisting the inmate, the officer would have done what was legal and in turn, bring good results at the expense of undermining the order from the captain. However, if made public, the decision would be justified.

Action Plan to Promote Ethical Behavior and Potential Resistance

For every law enforcement officer, it is their fundamental duty to serve the community, protect the innocent, and the weak, and safeguard lives and property respecting the constitutional rights to justice, liberty, and equality. Thus, they must perform their roles competently and effectively exercising their discretionary authority. Simply put, they should always maintain courageous calm in danger, ridicule, or scorn, developing self-restraint by being mindful of other people's welfare. Honesty in deed and thought should be upheld serving as an example of obeying the law and regulations of the workplace and the nation at large. All these should be done responsibly and ethically if public trust is to be established.

Ethics should be emphasized on a continuous basis as it is a thread that runs through every facet of law enforcement. Training should be done to emphasize and teach ethics at every opportunity in order to bring positive change to the cultural aversion of officers reporting other colleagues who have done wrong. Thus, officers are left with no option but to recognize the moral dilemma in various situations, make sound decisions, and act with integrity with consistency, and within ethical boundaries. According to (Lawrence, 2019) peer pressure, lax administration and perceived legitimacy of reporting can thwart good intentions.

In practice, safeguards to ensure the human rights of the inmates are observed should aim at the access of effective complaint systems, independent inspection, and monitoring mechanisms (Behan & Kirkham, 2016). Police discretion is influenced by factors such as the law, departmental culture, and policy, inmate, situation, and setting. Officers should exercise their duties as they must do. In light of the above action plan, resistance may mainly come from the colleagues themselves in conflicting issues such as the case study. In doing contrary to what the captain orders, the officer should go beyond his inhumane leadership and seek for medical assistance for the inmate. Thus, he should 'defy the order from above' in light of the good that will result from his legal, considerate, and reasonable action.

Conclusion

Depending on where a person is incarcerated and their stage of the criminal process, the rights may vary. Specific standards that address the needs of particular groups of inmates, such as children, women, and those with mental disorders should be observed. Therefore, states have a great obligation for prisoners in that depriving them of their liberty translates to assuming a duty of care. Moreover, prisoners should be subjected to humane conditions including the provision of food, water, sanitation, healthcare, adequate accommodation, access to exercise, fresh air, and light.

Most suicidal cases suggest substance misuse, psychiatric illness, and repetitive self-harm where inmates are been recognized as a vulnerable population at risk of suicide. Law enforcement officers have the fundamental duty to serve the community, protect the innocent, and the weak, and safeguard lives and property respecting the constitutional rights to justice, liberty, and equality.

References

1. Callahan, L. A., & Noether, C. D. (2018). Brief Jail Mental Health Screen utilization in US jails. J Forensic Med Forecast. 2018; 1 (1), 1006.
2. Fazel, S., Ramesh, T., & Hawton, K. (2017). Suicide in prisons: an international study of prevalence and contributory factors. The Lancet Psychiatry, 4(12), 946-952.
3. Lawrence, J. (2019). Argument for Action: Ethics and Professional Conduct: Ethics and Professional Conduct. Routledge.
4. Outlaw, R., Colquitt, J. A., Baer, M. D., & Sessions, H. (2019). How fair versus how long: An integrative theory‐based examination of procedural justice and procedural timeliness. Personnel Psychology.
5. Ugelvik, T. (2016). Prisons as welfare institutions?. Handbook on prisons, 388.
6. Wener, R. E. (2018). Can Correctional Environments Be Humane? A Case for Evidence and Value-Based Design. In Environmental Psychology and Human Well-Being (pp. 281-311). Academic Press.
7. Wildeman, C., Fitzpatrick, M. D., & Goldman, A. W. (2018). Conditions of confinement in American prisons and jails. Annual Review of Law and Social Science, 14, 29-47.