Page 172 |
Save page Remove page | Previous | 172 of 223 | Next |
|
small (250x250 max)
medium (500x500 max)
Large (1000x1000 max)
Extra Large
large ( > 500x500)
Full Resolution
All (PDF)
|
This page
All
|
160
Chapter 5
Conclusions and Recommendations
Although it is theoretically possible that the Riverside Police Department
might have decided to introduce reforms on its own, my research and the numerous
interviews I conducted with officials, community leaders, and others revealed the
powerful role the consent decree played as a catalyst for action. The approach taken
by the parties to the decree was collaborative, leading to innovative solutions to the
challenge of policing accountability. The police reforms addressed systemic
organizational dysfunction rather than traditional responses focusing on individual
officers. Indeed, the lessons learned in Riverside may be relevant to other public
institutions in need of reform, such as the military and prisons.
Several important implications may be gleaned from this analysis of the
California Attorney General’s reform intervention into the Riverside Police
Department. The most important finding is that the AG’s intervention produced
constructive changes in the way the RPD conducts its business. The RPD became
more professional, effective, transparent and accountable as it implemented the
provisions of the stipulated judgment. This demonstrates that institutional reform
litigation can result in meaningful police reform. However, it is a challenging
endeavor that requires long-term commitment by the participants.
Police reform requires significant economic and human resources, a
supportive political environment, and usually a high profile critical incident or
scandal. There are many law enforcement agencies with considerable problems that
Object Description
| Title | Policing accountability: an empirical investigation of state-sponsored police reform in Riverside, California |
| Author | Gomez, Jose Adolfo |
| Author email | jagclash@yahoo.com; jgomez@treasurer.ca.gov |
| Degree | Doctor of Philosophy |
| Document type | Dissertation |
| Degree program | Political Science |
| School | College of Letters, Arts and Sciences |
| Date defended/completed | 2008-08-01 |
| Date submitted | 2008 |
| Restricted until | Restricted until 13 Oct. 2010. |
| Date published | 2010-10-13 |
| Advisor (committee chair) | Renteln, Alison Dundes |
| Advisor (committee member) |
Newland, Chester A. Wong, Janelle S. |
| Abstract | The police have the ability to detain, arrest, and use force when necessary. Police accountability is thus of paramount concern to the public. Numerous examples of police misconduct, including cases of excessive force, brutality, and corruption, appear regularly via the news media. These incidents often evidence systemic organizational problems in law enforcement agencies. Scholars have observed that attempts at police reform have placed too much emphasis on individuals behaving badly, rather than on the systemic problems of the police department.; Beginning in the second half of the 1990s, federal and state Attorneys General began employing institutional reform litigation, in the form of consent decrees, to reform law enforcement agencies and enhance police accountability. The consent decrees were crafted to address systemic organizational dysfunction in local police departments. The United States Department of Justice (USDOJ) conducted most of these reform interventions. However, a notable exception was the settlement agreement between the Attorney General of the State of California and the City of Riverside, California.; There has been little research on the efficacy of these efforts to rehabilitate law enforcement agencies. This analysis is a case study of the effectiveness of the institutional reform intervention by the California Attorney General into the Riverside Police Department (RPD). The detailed examination revealed that the intervention produced constructive changes in the way the RPD conducts its business. The RPD became more professional, effective, transparent and accountable as it implemented the provisions of the consent decree, demonstrating that institutional reform litigation can result in meaningful police reform. The shadow of the law was ever present, encouraging an ethos of cooperation and exerting pressure for meaningful organizational change. The Riverside experience suggests that a facilitative oversight style produces constructive collaboration between the parties, improving the likelihood of durable police reform. Moreover, consent decrees to correct systemic police misconduct should not be the exclusive purview of the USDOJ. State Attorneys General can effectively initiate police reform and in some cases state intervention is a more appropriate alternative. |
| Keyword | institutional reform; police reform; police accountability; state attorney's general; police misconduct; organizational change; consent decrees |
| Geographic subject (city or populated place) | Riverside |
| Geographic subject (state) | California |
| Coverage date | 1993/2008 |
| Language | English |
| Part of collection | University of Southern California dissertations and theses |
| Publisher (of the original version) | University of Southern California |
| Place of publication (of the original version) | Los Angeles, California |
| Publisher (of the digital version) | University of Southern California. Libraries |
| Provenance | Electronically uploaded by the author |
| Type | texts |
| Legacy record ID | usctheses-m1664 |
| Contributing entity | University of Southern California |
| Rights | Gomez, Jose Adolfo |
| Repository name | Libraries, University of Southern California |
| Repository address | Los Angeles, California |
| Repository email | cisadmin@lib.usc.edu |
| Filename | etd-Gomez-2358 |
| Archival file | uscthesesreloadpub_Volume29/etd-Gomez-2358.pdf |
Description
| Title | Page 172 |
| Contributing entity | University of Southern California |
| Repository email | cisadmin@lib.usc.edu |
| Full text | 160 Chapter 5 Conclusions and Recommendations Although it is theoretically possible that the Riverside Police Department might have decided to introduce reforms on its own, my research and the numerous interviews I conducted with officials, community leaders, and others revealed the powerful role the consent decree played as a catalyst for action. The approach taken by the parties to the decree was collaborative, leading to innovative solutions to the challenge of policing accountability. The police reforms addressed systemic organizational dysfunction rather than traditional responses focusing on individual officers. Indeed, the lessons learned in Riverside may be relevant to other public institutions in need of reform, such as the military and prisons. Several important implications may be gleaned from this analysis of the California Attorney General’s reform intervention into the Riverside Police Department. The most important finding is that the AG’s intervention produced constructive changes in the way the RPD conducts its business. The RPD became more professional, effective, transparent and accountable as it implemented the provisions of the stipulated judgment. This demonstrates that institutional reform litigation can result in meaningful police reform. However, it is a challenging endeavor that requires long-term commitment by the participants. Police reform requires significant economic and human resources, a supportive political environment, and usually a high profile critical incident or scandal. There are many law enforcement agencies with considerable problems that |
