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One of the first forms of policing in the United States. Slave Patrols were organized groups of armed men who monitored and enforced discipline on African American slaves. They mainly focused on capturing escaped slaves. These slave patrols are important because they were the first methods of policing in the U.S.

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During the 1800s people manipulated state and local governments through bribery and intimidation to maintain their positions and wealth. Police chiefs and officers were appointed by the mayor or other city official and the served under him through patronage. Patronage was a system that rewarded lucrative jobs to supporters of political figures and if the political figure lost their position, their supporters would loose their jobs as well. Since the police force was appointed by political figures under patronage, they were encouraged to enforce political agendas to benefit the people who appointed them and themselves. Because of this politicians used the police forces for political reasons, such as harassing their opponents or enforcing laws that were selectively advantageous to them. This system was called cronyism.

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United Kingdom's Metropolitan Police Act (1829)

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United Kingdom's Metropolitan Police Act (1829)

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This act was created from Robert Peel's model of policing and is the beginning of modern policing. This type of policing focused more on crime prevention and community control, a strategy to maintain strong visibility in everyday life, and a militaristic structure. Police forces now had uniforms, ranks, and a code of command and discipline. This new way of policing spread to the US and was used to enforce hierarchy in the US by intimidating groups of people, and preventing them from having the same privileges as higher-class people. Police officers policed the poor, no matter who they were, to limit their freedom, prevent them from rebelling, and maintain social structures that benefited the wealthy upper class. The police became a method of controlling disadvantaged populations, causing police discretion to be used to discriminate against lower-class people.

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Abraham Lincoln issued the emancipation proclamation on January 1st, 1863. This was a major event in United States history and is important when discussing police discretion because when slavery was outlawed racist White people of power had to find new ways to control Black citizens and keep them underprivileged and disadvantaged. Such as the Black Codes, the Jim Crow Laws, and extreme discrimination within the police force. The concept of police discretion was used to excuse this extremely unequal treatment of Black people compared to White people.

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After the abolition of legal slavery in the United States, the White populations created vigilante groups and local police forces that helped suppress freed Black people and enforce laws that kept them economically disadvantaged and alienated. These groups used justice as an excuse to attack and kill people they felt to be outlaws, whether they actually were on not.

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First Police Brutality Commission (1894)

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First Police Brutality Commission (1894)

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The first police brutality commission discovered that officers were using violent beatings to police. This commission established evidence of systemic corruption and violence within the police force. This event reveals the dark side of police discretion, without laws and policies preventing brutality and discrimination, the police force can use their discretion to target and brutalize groups of people.

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Attacks by Whites on innocent Black citizens. Police would either refuse to help Black citizens or would participate in attacks against Black citizens. This is another example of police using discretion as an excuse to not protect Black citizens and to favor White citizens.

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Discrimination and Racism in the Police Force in the 1920s

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Discrimination and Racism in the Police Force in the 1920s

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Racism, discrimination, and police brutality persist within the police force. Black Americans begin to study and write about these issues. W. E. B. Du Bois writes about police brutality against African Americans in NAACP magazine. Police officers are doing stop-and-frisk policing and arresting people on charges that are not actually crimes such as "suspicious character". Innocent Black Americans were being needless arrested.

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Prohibition was the legal prevention of the manufacture, sale, and distribution of alcohol. Prohibition gave rise to bootlegging and increased drastically mob activity. During the prohibition police forces became so corrupt they often worked in cahoots with bootleggers and mobsters. This caused the United States to enter an almost lawless period of time.

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The progressive movement began to change the way citizens of the United States saw the government and changed their ideals for what the government should be. In the context of the police force, progressives began questioning what type of people should our officers be. This movement became stronger after prohibition magnified corruption and incompetence in the police force. The Wickersham Commission of 1929 addressed problems within the police force and proposed suggestions on how to improve it. Among other things, the commission suggested that governments sever the links between politicians and the police.