Styles Of Policing: A Case Study

James Q. Wilson was a political scientist who studied 8 different police departments and came up with the following 3 styles of policing: Legalistic Style, Watchman Style, and Service style (Bohm & Haley, 2014). First, Legalistic style is when the police department takes pride of how many arrests are made. The more arrests that are made the less crime that will be committed. They threatened the community with jail time so they can comply with the law. You will notice this style in larger metropolitan areas. Secondly, Watchman Style is using other forms of discipline and communication to solve problems rather than arrest. Arrest then used when those forms fail or the citizens refuse to comply. You will notice this style in poor areas rather than the more wealthy areas. Lastly, Service Style is when the police helps the citizens rather than arresting …show more content…
186). There are different types of patrol such as Preventive Patrol, Directed Patrol, Aggressive Patrol, and Foot Patrol. They all take a different perspective on how to get results and react differently to crime. “A Criminal investigation has been defined as a lawful search for people and things to reconstruct the circumstances of an illegal act, apprehend or determine the guilty party, and aid in the state’s prosecution of the offender” (Bohm & Haley, 2014, pg. 191). The investigation process contains multiple parts and processes that the detective has to complete to solve the crimes. Traffic officers play a great role as well, their duty is to stop traffic violators from breaking the law before it results of a serious accident or even loss of life. There are multiple illegal drugs in the world that no one can keep count of. Every day we hear about a new creative drug an addict invented to just get their next high. Many police departments assigned officers just for drug enforcement