Police and Democracy -- good review article, free download, in pres

'Police and Democracy' Michigan Law Review, Vol. 103, p. 1699, June 2005 BY: DAVID A. SKLANSKY University of California, Los Angeles School of Law Document: Available from the SSRN Electronic Paper Collection: http://papers.ssrn.com/paper.taf?abstract_id=710701 Paper ID: UCLA School of Law Research Paper No. 05-11 Contact: DAVID A. SKLANSKY Email: Mailto:sklansky@law.ucla.edu Postal: University of California, Los Angeles School of Law 405 Hilgard Avenue Box 951476 Los Angeles, CA 90095-1476 UNITED STATES Phone: 310-825-5878 Fax: 310-206-7010 ABSTRACT: This Article explores the connections between ideas about American democracy and ideas about the police. I argue that criminal procedure jurisprudence and scholarship on the police over the past half-century have roughly tracked, in a delayed fashion, developments in democratic theory over the same period. The most important of these developments were, first, the emergence during the 1950s of the pluralist theory of democracy, an unusually rich and resonant account that emphasized the roles of elites, interest groups, and competition in sustaining American democracy; and second, beginning in the 1960s, the gradual shift away from this theory and toward accounts of democracy emphasizing popular participation, community, and deliberation. Democratic pluralism helps make sense of several interrelated hallmarks of criminal procedure and police studies in the Warren and Burger Court eras: the focus on the group psychology of the police; the concern with police discretion and the reliance on judicial oversight; the emphasis on personal dignity; the attraction to second wave police professionalism; the embrace of modernity; the centrality of consensus; and the disregard of institutional structure. The subsequent shift away from pluralism finds reflection in several themes in contemporary criminal procedure: the enthusiasm for community participation; the premium placed on transparency; the distrust of elites and expertise; the preoccupation with legitimacy; and the retreat from modernity. Other features of criminal procedure jurisprudence and scholarship today - the continued treatment of the police as a breed apart, the persistent de-emphasis of institutional structure, and the relative inattention to issues of equality - reflect important points of continuity between pluralism and the theories that supplanted it. Our ideas about policing could benefit from a more rounded understanding of democracy - an understanding sensitive to those aspects of democracy that have to do less with collective self-rule than with traditions of resistance to illegitimate hierarchy, and mindful of the core insights of democratic pluralism, 1960s-style participatory democracy, and eighteenth-century political economy. I investigate, in a tentative fashion, how such an understanding of democracy might affect our thinking about five important issues in contemporary law enforcement: community policing, racial profiling, police privatization, police personnel practices, and public disclosure of law enforcement practices. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Those of you have read my posts over the past few years know of the struggle that has gone on with the Clay County Sheriff's Office and the time and work it took to obtain a grand jury to investigate the complaints, and how the system worked and now there is a new sheriff. Unfortunately, the problems that were ignored for so long, from illegal dumping of toxic wastes, to favoritism and possible kickbacks, are just now able to be addressed. It is a credit to the people of Clay County that they are taking charge of their government and it would be a good idea for NACOLE to have a packet of information sent to the organizers to help them in their endeavors. It gets very tiresome fighting county hall, and it is not always something that people appreciate. In fact, if this group continues to grow, it would be a good idea for NACOLE to send someone here to talk with them. I think the sheriff knows the value of having a strong civilian oversight system for the suport and benefit of his deputies. dh, in Florida, feeling good that the system is working. * The Florida Times-Union* *May 16, 2005* *Clay group wants to talk political change* * By JIM SCHOETTLER* *The Times-Union * A Clay County grass-roots group that helped change how county commissioners are elected will seek support for future battles with county leaders during a citizens meeting tonight. -------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------- Angered by an ongoing illegal dumping crisis and other issues, the Citizens for Term Limits and Accountability plans to seek public input on exploring referendums to cut commissioners' annual $55,000 salaries and repeal a charter amendment that switched control of the county budget from the clerk of courts to the county manager, group leaders said. The group also plans to begin circulating a petition of no-confidence for at least four of the commissioners and may ask some to resign, said Durwood Smith and Jane Padgett, co-founders of the group. The logistics of a recall petition will also be discussed, Smith said. The targeted commissioners are Chairman George Bush, Christy Fitzgerald, Glenn Lassiter and Patrick McGovern, who've served multiple terms, the co-founders said. Actions by Commissioner Harold Rutledge are not being questioned since he took office last year. Smith, who would not reveal the size of his group, said people have called him and Padgett complaining about the accountability of the commissioners and asking how changes can be made. The commissioners have been on the defensive as a corruption investigation into county government continues, citizens face paying millions for a clean-up of illegal dumping, and a recent illegal bridge project was scrapped. Smith said turnout at the meeting will help determine whether the complaints are more than just talk. -------------------------------------------------- HITTING HOME Citizens meeting The Citizens for Term Limits and Accountability will sponsor a citizens meeting at 7 tonightat Fleming Island High School, 2233 Village Square Parkway. The meeting will be in the Teacher Training Center. -------------------------------------------------- 'We want to find out if they really want to have something done,' he said. 'I think we can accomplish whatever we set out to do. We'll look at all the options we have.' Four of five commissioners said they didn't plan to attend the meeting. Fitzgerald couldn't be reached for comment. Commissioners said they aren't intimidated by the citizen movement, adding that they work hard to earn their pay. 'They can do what they want to do as far as I'm concerned,' Bush said. 'I stand with my head up, and I walk straight down the line. I've got nothing to be ashamed of.' McGovern said he doesn't discount the influence of Smith, a mainstay at County Commission meetings. 'He's not just a gadfly,' McGovern said. 'He seems to be a pretty good barometer of at least one segment of the population.' The meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Fleming Island High School. The group, which is a registered political action committee, drove a referendum that amended the county charter in 2000 by limiting commissioners to two four-year terms. Last year, they were behind a charter change that split the county into five voting districts. The agenda shows that Smith, Padgett and former Commissioners Ron Stotler and Buddy Griffin will address the audience, followed by discussion and feedback. The group has advertised the meeting on road signs and in a paid advertisement that reads: 'Can you afford the problems in Clay County government? Come discuss the accountability of our public officials and what we can do about it!' Padgett said residents are frustrated with the actions and inactions of the commissioners. She is encouraging people to take charge if they want change. 'They traditionally have looked to our elected officials as the ones who are going to solve the problems and wonder why nothing has been done up to this point,' she said. 'It must come from the citizens.' jim.schoettlerjacksonville.com <>, (904) 359-4385 This story can be found on Jacksonville.com <> at http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/051605/met_18747426.shtml. ------------------------------ Home <>< />< />< />