Topic Proposal

• I am taking a global approach to presenting a policy argument about to issue of police corruption in the United States of America.
• The issue at hand is that police corruption exists in America today, and not enough measures are being taken in order to prevent/stop its occurrence.  Corruption, which is by definition, "the abuse of police authority for personal or organizational gain," comes in many forms, including drug trafficking, money laundering, stealing equipment, bribery, blackmail, extortion, illegal use of lethal force, or personal favors for friends and family members.  Police forces are supposed to be upstanding, virtuous protectors of the people, but this is not always the case. 
• A solution to the prominent problem of police corruption in America includes a multi-fold program initiating the help of U.S. government, U.S. law enforcement agencies, and also of U.S. citizens.  The solution involves many areas, specifically, higher recruitment standards, a more stringent emphasis on ethics during training, an increase in the responsibilities of police management officers, and working to control both the future and present actions of the officers in ways that both prevent and put a halt to unlawful behavior through punishment. 
• This proposed solution would help fix the problem for many reasons.  First, part of the issue alone is that unqualified, undeserving officers are being hired, and more competitive recruitment qualifications would fix this problem alone.  Secondly, if the officers are trained from the onset of their careers to behave like the respectable, hard-working policemen that they should be, they will be less likely to stray from their intended career paths.  Also, officers in managerial positions need to be more focused on controlling the behaviors of their subordinates so as to report and punish officers who are doing the wrong.  Preventative actions can be taken to ensure that officers do not even have any opportunities to act corruptly, and disciplinary actions can be taken to establish a reason for officers to fear corruption and the consequences of it. 
• I am basing this proposal on the perspective which stated that too many police officers in America today are abusing their power and doing more harm than good.  People who support this opinion believe that corruption is a major problem among law enforcement agencies, and it needs to be addressed as soon as possible. 
• Goldschmidt, Jona. "The Necessity of Dishonesty: Police Deviance, Making the Case, and the Public Good." Policing & Society 
• Holloway, Brandon. "Police Corruption." International Encyclopedia of Justice Studies
• "Police Corruption." Inquisition 21st Century
• I am concerned about being detailed enough in my proposal to stop/decrease police corruption.  I hope that I can clearly articulate exact, detailed ways to stop the problem, instead of just proposing broad, general ways to try and fix it.