Public Policy and Criminal Justice
An example of a departmental policy formulated to address a public issue is the de- escalation policy by Los Angeles Police Department. With an increased number of police shootings and use of excessive force while arresting suspects, there was a need for enacting a policy to regulate police actions. The de-escalation policy aims at reviewing whether the decision of police officers to use force is justified or not. Enacting this policy is a vital step in reforming the department since it ensures peaceful coexistence of police officers and the public. Moreover, it leads to some of the factors associated with excessive use of force such as discrimination. This policy safeguards the public from the previous use of force depicted in police shootings, which could not be efficiently justified.
With media reports that keep exaggerating crime reports, the public possesses new perceptions to criminality (Dunn, 2015). Drug abuse is one of the factors linked to criminality by many people. It is considered that a reduction in drug abuse will subsequently lead to a decline in criminal activities. This perception is related to a public policy that governs drugs usage. Poverty and unemployment are other factors linked to criminality. This perception is associated with the public policy of federal budget and spending. If the government aims at eradicating poverty and high unemployment rates, the issue of criminality can be solved. Political actors may face a critical challenge in addressing these public issues due to lack of defined policies enacted to safeguard the public. Therefore, it is imperative to enact more policies, such as federal and budget policies, to oversee public issues like theft and criminality.
Having so many actors acting in one criminal justice arena that try to create the same public policy may impose pressure on the public. As such, the public may possess varying perceptions to different actors, hence, a succinct appeal for changing the public issue of interest may not be reached. According to Dunn (2015), it would be necessary to utilize few actors to create a public policy aimed at containing negative public perceptions and opposing views.
Reference
Dunn, W. N. (2015). Public policy analysis. New York: Routledge.
