Assignment #5


Source: http://thefreshscent.com/tag/hawaii/

Statistically there are many disparities among genders in police departments. Some things that might be of interest are:

1. How many females do male police officers let go for speeding as opposed to female police officers?

Male police officers may feel some kind of attraction to female people they pull over and thus give them less of a hard time for speeding whereas most likely a female officer will not harbor such an attraction and evaluate the situation accordingly.

2. What percentage of female officers do field work as opposed to men and how effective is it?

There is a stigma that women cannot do field work as well as men because they are not as physically capable. It would be nice to see if gender even matters in how well field work is accomplished.

3. What is the percentage of male police officers compared to female police officers?

It isn’t good to have a very homogenized pool of police officers. Diversity makes everyone better and more able to understand and interact with other demographics and cultures. If there is a noticeably uneven balance among officers maybe police departments should look into diversifying.

4. What is the percentage of male officers who quit in comparison to the percentage of female officers who quit?

Male police officers have an easier time becoming a part of the police force and women aren’t accepted as quickly or easily. Does this have an effect on the dropout rate of in training police or newly hired police and is there a fix that can be implemented?

5. How quickly do promotions occur for male officers in comparison to female officers?

Are promotions being given fairly in the police workforce and is there bias being shown in who gets promotions without regards to work ethic and accomplishments? In a more fair work environment more officers will be encouraged to do their best and stay a part of the team.

We believe that the officer in the video is The Law Enforcer. The Law Enforcer follows and enforces the laws. He plays it “by the book” and does what he can to make sure the laws are upheld. They work on all types of crimes with no bias. The officer is the video fits this category because he follows all the proper procedures. He pulls the man over for suspected drunk driving and is nice about the situation. After a fight with the suspect the officer was forced to take his life. Once he secured the passenger in the car, he still did his duty and tried to save the suspects life. During the whole confrontation the officer did everything how he was supposed to.

An account of police brutality by Honolulu Police went unreported and the account ended up in a Honolulu newspaper. A local man named Roger Tansley witnessed a number of police officers using excessive force to detain a prisoner.
Outside of a mini mart in Kaneohe two cop cars pulled up into the parking lot. A handcuffed man fell out of the back seat of one car and hit the pavement screaming for help. One police officer slammed him into the back bumper of his car, while the other cop put the prisoner in a chokehold. He also stuck his knee into the back of the convict so hard his eyes were bulging.
After the man was in a chokehold, other patrol cars pulled up. There were now 6 officers present holding the man down while one put leg shackles on the prisoner who was bleeding. Once the man was shackled 5 squad cars left and one drove up to question the witnesses. He did not explain his reasons for the excessive force. He just said the suspect kicked out his back window and was being arrested for kidnapping.
The force used in the assault was deadly force. The man was put in a situation where significant bodily harm occurred. The police officers did not need to use such force for a man who was already in handcuffs. If the man had been trying to escape standard police procedures taught in the academy could have been used to detain the subject further.
Instead of using deadly force to detain a defenseless criminal they could acted civilly and just did their job and take him in. If a criminal is already in handcuffs brutally beating him is not necessary. We believe that by the police officers actions it reduces the severity of the criminal act because now people will be more concerned about how the cops handled the situation, thus, possibly letting go the real criminal that was suppose to and should be punished.


References:

Tansley, Roger. (2002). Police Brutality in Subduing a Prisoner. Police Brutality in Honolulu Goes
Unreported. Retrieved from: http://archives.lists.indymedia.org/imc-hawaii/2002-September/000514.html.

YouTube - Police fights for his life. (n.d.). Retrieved October 3, 2009, from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=81RIZephDfM

Homework #2

According to the UCR statistics presented by the state of Hawaii, violent crimes make up a minority of all index crimes in the state, while property index crimes make up the vast majority. Among violent crimes, murder is the least commonly occurring, while robbery and aggravated assault are the most commonly occurring. Property index crimes far outnumber violent crimes, with larceny-theft accounting more than 60% of all index crimes, followed by robbery in commonality of occurrence. Clearly, the bulk of index crimes reported are classified as larceny-theft.
Looking at this data in terms of UCR data, one might wish to know how Hawaii defines larceny-theft. How often does the hierarchy rule affect the reported statistic? And what goods do these offenses commonly include?
From the perspective of NCVS data, one might ask what business relationships the victims in question have. What criminal records might they have? Do the victims have children under the age of 12 who were witness to the crime?
And from the perspective of self-report data, one might ask what the motive of each report is. What are the criminal records of the reporters? Can these reports be corroborated by NCVS data?

In Hawaii smoking is illegal indoors in some place, it is still legal outdoors. People who smoke in public are choosing to harm themselves, but the people who breathe in the smoke are being harmed just as much. Even if people don’t want to smoke they are exposed to it in public. Another reason it should be illegal is that overtime less people would want to smoke because of such limited areas it is allowed. The last reason is that the government should protect the people and not the businesses. The profit from smoking is so high that the government will continue to want the tax and revenue.
The legal drinking age should be changed to 18 years old. The first reason is because most teens under the age of 21 will drink no matter what the law is. In a University of Indiana article they state that if the age is change the universities and restaurants can monitor more closely on the younger drinkers. The next reason is that the laws we have in affect right now does not stop under age drinking so the government needs to take a different approach to the problem. The last reason is that if you trust an 18 year old to defend our country they should be given all the rights a normal, adult, American receives.

Corbit Ahn, 29, has been accused of murdering an 18 year old girl named Iris Rodrigues-Kaikana. Iris’ body was found the morning of August 24th in the Kamehameha Homes public housing complex. Red marks were present on her neck indicating strangulation. Corbit Ahn had been present at these apartments many times to visit his niece and nephew. He would also give martial arts training to the current boy friend of the children’s mother.
Due to Ahn’s criminal history, we would classify him as a career criminal. He has been given quite a few sentences and breaks, yet he still continues to break the laws. This description best fits the developmental theory of criminal behavior. The life course theory states criminality is a process, influenced by certain traits and social experiences. These experiences can alter one’s behavior for the better, or in Ahn’s case, the worse.
Right now Corbit Ahn is still going through the court process. He has his preliminary is set for September 10, 2009. If convicted he could be facing quite the sentence if not life in prison. It is doubtful for Hawaii to sentence him to death, since there has not been an execution for roughly 50 years. The likely course of action will be life in prison without parole. However, we believe life in prison with the possibility of parole should be his sentencing if convicted. During his prison sentence though, he should have to attend rehabilitation programs, and also see a therapist to find out why he continues to commit crimes.

Hawaii Murder Suspect Already on Probation in Domestic Violence. (2009, September 9). by Jim Dooley. http://www.honoluluadvertiser.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2009909090364

Why the drinking age should be lowered: An opinion based upon research. (2009, September 9). by Ruth C. Engs. http://www.indiana.edu/~engs/articles/cqoped.html

Smoking, ban in public places (2009 September 9). by George Molyneaux. http://www.idebate.org/debatabase/topic_details.php?topicID=526