NCJ Number
179400
Journal
Police Chief Volume: 66 Issue: 10 Dated: October 1999 Pages: 126-131
Date Published
October 1999
Length
4 pages
Annotation
This article uses the Balkan police paradigm to draw lessons for democratic policing in America.
Abstract
Police in any country are in a primary position to either violate or protect human rights, and police misconduct tends to increase when ethnic tensions are high. In both Bosnia and Kosovo, the police were the primary perpetrators of gross violations of human rights and violence against people merely because of their ethnic heritage. They became the "players" in the political goal of "ethnic cleansing." The Balkan police paradigm should reconfirm for American policing the importance of administering equal justice for all citizens regardless of ethnic heritage. It should also strengthen the resolve of police agencies to face the difficulties of supervising police activity in multicultural communities. Police leaders are crucial in providing the role model and training program that prepares front-line officers to meet the challenges of policing a multicultural society. Only police chiefs and managers can ensure that there are procedures in place to hold officers accountable for misconduct. They must further ensure that police misconduct motivated by ethnic prejudice is not tolerated.