Introduction
The prevalence of moral dilemmas in everyday life suggests that incorporating dilemmas into the ethical training of police officers is warranted. A person must already care about doing the right thing to find themselves in a situation where they cannot choose between two equally good but mutually exclusive options (Delattre, 2002). We should not presume that good character and morality result from a person’s problem-solving ability. Ethical dilemmas in law enforcement are a common problem for police officers and law enforcement students; therefore, this book aims to help them find practical solutions to address these challenges.
Others in the caregiving field who are unsure about the relevance of their work or wish to make a fundamental change in their professional and personal life will also find it valuable. On the whole, the book focuses on how today’s police officers decide on what is “right” (Jetmore, 2005). For example, “policing in a democracy faces tremendous ethical decisions,” Jetmore phrased. Regarding professional and personal conduct, no other profession places such stringent demands on its members. Morality is described as a system of moral values, and ethics is defined as a scientific study of human behavior according to a set of moral standards that can be discovered by reason.
It is possible to make informed decisions through the study of ethics when we are unsure of the correct course of action. Asking oneself, “How should I spend my life?” is the beginning of one’s journey towards morality (Jetmore, 2005). When making decisions about your life, ethics provides a prism through which you can examine your possibilities.
Building one’s character through an understanding of ethical principles is a powerful tool for everyone who wants to lead a good life. Since police discretion encompasses a wide range of situations, the personal ethics of police officers are crucial. Officers may only make judgments considering what is feasible, possible, and ethical if they practice individual ethics, defined as “the knowledge that one’s conscience determines the moral rightness of an action.”.
The ethical dilemma starts in the middle of a municipal park when a police officer on patrol duty comes across three young people smoking marijuana in an isolated spot. As soon as they see the police, they start running; however, one of them is so obese that he only manages to cover a few yards before he gives up, and the others manage to escape (Jetmore, 2005). During the course of his conversation with the teen, the officer noticed that the lad was so shaken up that he had peed in his trousers. The officer also finds out that Benjamin Saunders is the young man’s name and that he has asthma. In his jacket pocket, the officer uncovers an asthma inhaler. Having reached the legal age of majority in his home state of California, Saunders can now be charged as an adult in the criminal justice system.
At this point, Saunders breaks down in tears when the cop returns with the partially smoked marijuana cigarette. Upon further questioning, he admits that it was the first time his two 15-year-old mates had invited him out. He consented to go with the two boys to smoke marijuana even though the smoke of any type makes him sick, afraid that if he refused, he would never be allowed to hang out with them again. In the end, Saunders is forced to divulge the identities of the other two suspects to the officers, who reside within walking distance of the park.
The following questions should be considered to determine the precise moral dilemma that needs to be resolved.
- What is the proper course of action?
- Is the officer right in handcuffing Saunders?
- Is the officer’s decision to take the two other minors into custody and send them to the juvenile justice system right?
- What about the job of the police?
Aristotle’s Ethical Theory
This theory posits that a person must possess both good reason and good character to be truly virtuous. In addition to knowing the right thing to do, a decent person has a strong emotional attachment to what is right. Furthermore, these two virtues are intertwined, and it is impossible to have one without the other (Gottlieb, 2022). A variety of perspectives on happiness are found in the so-called “Platonic dialogues,” a collection of positive experiences scattered throughout Plato’s Republic, presented as if they were prerequisites to perfection (Irwin, 2003).
However, because it is dependent on philosophical presuppositions that are at best vague and outside the realm of ordinary cognition, it is possible to define the nature of this state as follows: The active individual’s self-sufficient condition of happiness is neither specifically defined as in Aristotle’s writings on the subject nor defined as a self-sufficient state of happiness.
Consequently, the police will be doing the right thing by handcuffing Saunders, transporting him to a police station, having him sign a statement confessing his involvement and implicating the other two juveniles, and then booking him. This character’s actions may reveal a person’s belief in and desire to do the right thing, as well as their subsequent happiness. The prohibition of marijuana was found to be a minor deterrent, with only a slight rise in use following the easing of penalties. In my opinion, even if marijuana or any other drug were accessible for a reasonable price, people with an addiction would still spend their hard-earned cash on it.
In this situation, I would have had to let the authorities handle it. Virtue ethics instructs us to ensure that we have all the facts before making a decision based on our ethical views. Instead of handcuffing the boy, I suppose I would have tried to talk to his parent first to see if there was a way to resolve the matter without handcuffs.
Perhaps you could give them the option to monitor their children’s daily activities both inside and outside the classroom. In this instance, there was no evidence to suggest that the parents were aware of what their children were doing after school. Given these circumstances, the wisest course of action would have been for their parent to assume some of the burden of responsibility.
Utilitarianism
Despite a severe and unfair legal system that discourages the use of marijuana, it is the most commonly used illicit substance in the United States, and the majority of adolescents claim to have used it at some point in their lives. Utilitarianism is a relatively straightforward concept, allowing anyone to conduct any action as long as it does not cause harm or discomfort (Jetmore, 2005). Utilitarianism’s consequentialist theory maintains that the consequences of an action determine the truth or falsity of that action. Utilitarianism holds that only one item has moral worth: a person’s happiness.
Utilitarianism is a theory that ideally applies to the subject of marijuana legalization since it may justify marijuana use and assist the advocates of legalization. A person’s desire to use marijuana is not considered immoral by utilitarianism because it results in the desired effect and creates no harm to the user or others. In this particular instance, marijuana use cannot be considered immoral. From this vantage point, marijuana use is beneficial since it elevates one’s mood. As a result, marijuana is considered a recreational drug and is not meant to provoke any harm to the user.
Kant’s Theory
The focus of morality is not on the notion of how we can make ourselves happy but rather on how we may make ourselves fit for happiness. What a person should do and what an individual wants to accomplish are incompatible. They end up on a path that brings them momentary satisfaction but ultimately does not benefit them in the long term when they follow their desires (Johnson & Cureton, 2022). Contrarily, when someone does what they should, they will experience agony and frustration along the way, but they will be better off in the long run.
As long as we can reason, we will always be aware of our responsibilities. It is common to find Kant describing two common rational commandments: the hypothetical imperative, which specifies what one should do to achieve an objective; and the categorical imperative, which specifies what one should do because it is just and necessary. Marijuana use by minors was, therefore, improper and prohibited, to begin with. Consequently, the officer must determine which rule to follow before acting and whether she is willing for that rule to be applied to everyone in the country.
Conclusion
I did like the ‘moral’ and ‘ethical’ values existing today in law enforcement organizations and/or police officers. For law enforcement officers, ethics can be a challenging concept to convey at times. For instance, the legalization of marijuana is totally justified by utilitarianism because it benefits the user directly. In such situations that necessitate the protection of not only themselves but also all citizens, officers often believe that the method by which safety is achieved is not as important as the result of that security. Alternatively, police concerned with their own safety and the protection of others may not regard the idea of thinking deeply about the proper course of action as particularly essential at the time.
Moreover, I did not like the idea of the high demand for illegal drugs, as there is a corresponding rise in the number of crimes involving drug possession and sale. Thus, policing agencies must consistently uphold their moral and ethical values to achieve justice; otherwise, their legitimacy, trust, and confidence will be eroded. In the absence of ethical behavior, the police lose their validity, and without credibility, they are ill-equipped to accomplish their job.
References
Delattre, E. J. (2002). Character and Cops. Google Books. Web.
Gottlieb, P. (2022). The Virtue of Aristotle’s Ethics. Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews. Web.
Irwin, T. (2003). Plato’s Ethics. Google Books. Web.
Jetmore, L. F. (2005). The Path of the Warrior. Google Books. Web.
Johnson, R., & Cureton, A. (2022). Kant’s Moral Philosophy (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy). Stanford.edu. Web.