Reforming Police: Legitimacy and Effectiveness

Police legitimacy has become a growing concern for diverse states and societies. Policing is a controversial issue in diverse societies where cultures, religions and competing national identities challenge the existing order, and where the police in many cases have yet to develop the capabilities to engage with diversity and overcome its own biases and prejudices in order to better serve minorities. Public trust and confidence in the police is considered central to police work, which relies on the public's support and cooperation. Public distrust of the police may inhibit the ability of the police to control crime, reduce police effectiveness and, consequently, again, increase distrust of the police. Studies about public confidence and trust in the police find a gap between levels of trust among minorities and the majority population Negative perceptions of the police are re-enforced by marginalization and discrimination against minorities, as well as by direct mistreatment by the police. Police reform has been described as the development of “democratic policing” that includes accountability and transparency, a police force that reflect the society it serves and displays respect for the law. Police reform requires not only the willingness of the police to critically examine its policies towards and treatment of minorities but also an understanding of the problems and the available solutions. Overall, police reforms in various countries have attempted to enhance public trust in police, trust that would allow police to perform better, performance that would further strengthen public confidence. Measures included diversification of the police force, training of officers and community policing. This paper will study three different case studies of police reform – in Northern Ireland, Los Angeles and Israel –that followed crisis of police, in order to understand what measures were taken and whether reforms have enhanced police legitimacy across ethnic and racial divides.