CRIM 3652 Lecture Notes - Lecture 10: Erving Goffman
14 Dec 2016
School
Department
Course
Professor
Week 3 Readings and Review for Exam
WESTLEY
1) How do the police ‘justify’ the use of violence?
• We must look to unpack the interpretive experience of the police as an
occupational group
• . Police accept and morally justify their use of violence through their occupational
experience.
• The use of violence is related to occupational goals of the police. TWO police
justification of violence: 1) needed to make a ‘good pinch’ 2) needed to attain
respect from the public and to reinforce their position of respected lawful
authority by citizens who look at them with critical skepticism (ex.“new
visibility”).
• Police are obligated by their duties to use violence as the only measure adequate
to control countervoilence
• Fighting the drunk who is damaging property, police uses force in restoring order
• The armed criminal who has little regard for others and hatred for the police
forces the use of violence in the pursuit of duty
• They use a common sense and legal justification for the use of violence during
training for skills of violence
• They see it as good, as useful and as a part of their legal role
• A cop mentioned in a statement: you have to rough them up a bit so they
cooperate, the ends justify the means
• The police justifies themselves to the community when they crack big cases
• Another statement: they have pressure to crack the big case, like being told they
cant go home until they finish, makes them lose their patience
• They feel its okay to rough someone up in the case of sex crimes. They believe
that the community supports this situation and justifies violence against sex
crimes.
• In a survey of 73 police men, the #1 reason why they use force was because
disrespect to the officer
• Violence is seen as: just, acceptable, expected by his colleagues and community at
times, helps problem solve, obtains status and self-esteem.
• The conviction of the felon- justify violence to convict a felon
2) How do the police see us as governable citizens; that is, what are the three main
typologies the police use to categorize the public?
1) Suspicious persons-those whom the police have reason to believe that may have
committed a serious offense.
2) Assholes- those who do not accept police definition of the situation
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