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Kankakee Daily Journal
23 October 2009

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Ethics in Policing

Ethics hinder free meals for c

There is an old adage that goes, "If you want to find good food, just look where the truckers and cops eat."

While this may be true for truckers, it is usually not the case for police officers.

Did you ever wonder why certain food establishments always seem to have three or four squad cars parked outside? It is not because of the culinary delights served there, it is usually because they give discounted or free meals to the men and women in blue.

The art of finding and obtaining police discounts has been going on for years and is even passed down like some family tradition to new recruits during the field training program. The practice of receiving gratis coffee and meals is not illegal in the statutory sense, but it does have many drawbacks.

Consider the story of Officer Friendly from Any Town, USA. He is working the afternoon shift and his meal time is quickly approaching. Where should he dine tonight? Will it be a half-price burger? A couple of free tacos? Or a full-price meal at the family restaurant?

No, he has a craving for chicken and he knows just the place to satisfy that urge. Not only is the chicken good, but the price is right. As he enters the restaurant he sees the manager, Mr. Sanders behind the counter helping the order takers. He makes certain he gets in Mr. Sanders' line because there will be no mistake when the order is taken and the total tallied. Mr. Sanders takes the officers request and then winks and tells the officer there is no charge. Officer Friendly finishes his meal and goes back on patrol.

Several days later, Officer Friendly is now working the midnight shift and he notices a vehicle weaving from lane to lane, traveling under the speed limit, and stopping several feet back from the stop sign. A sure sign of an impaired driver. Officer Friendly activates the emergency equipment and the vehicle slowly pulls over to the curb and the driver stumbles out of the door.

When the officer approaches, he recognizes the driver, Mr. Sanders. A day of reckoning has begun. Mr. Sanders admits to his consumption of excessive alcohol and the officer knows from experience that he is definitely well over the legal limit. Mr. Sanders belligerently advises the officer that he has given away thousands of dollars of free food to the officer and his fellow companions and now the officer should return the favor. Officer Friendly is facing something that many officers will eventually encounter -- a lose-lose ethical dilemma.

If he arrests Mr. Sanders, the era of free food will come to an end and Officer Friendly will be chastised by his fellow officers for screwing up a good thing. If he allows Mr. Sanders to drive away and he gets in an accident, the officer would be held liable. If he takes Mr. Sanders home or places him in a taxi, it will surely be discovered and he may face charges by his superiors.

Officer Friendly has found himself in a situation he could have avoided.

Police officers along with elected officials and employees of public entities all are required to take an oath that mandates them to follow the laws of the land. In some departments, administrators have even incorporated an ethics code for all personnel, not only sworn officers.

If a police department is accredited through the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA), it requires that personnel receive ethics training every two years.

Even with these safeguards in place, the individual alone is held accountable for their actions. When someone accepts the first gratuity, they are taking a step onto a slippery slope which plummets into a dark chasm.

Not all will fall the entire length. Many will start to slip downward and then grab hold and pull themselves back to the top. Others however, will fall the entire distance, discovering at the bottom disgrace, embarrassment, loss of occupation and public disdain. Unfortunately, this is becoming a far too common occurrence, not only nationwide, but also within our own local area. Consider a hometown governor and a police chief from a small community; one currently serving time and the other awaiting sentencing. An excellent reminder to those in public service of what can happen if they do not maintain high ethical standards.

While rules, regulations and training courses are excellent avenues to remind public officials of what their responsibilities entail, I find that a simply stated line from a country song by Toby Keith is the best cue, "There's no right way to do the wrong thing."

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Article sourced from

Kankakee Daily Journal23 October 2009

Ethics hinder free meals for c

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Kankakee Daily Journal
23 October 2009