Police role descriptions in the media Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Police role descriptions in the media - Essay Example Being a bank of almost all the police stories in the United States, this website serves as an accessible source for the most recent happenings which concerns police and their activities. Four stories will be chosen depicting these four police roles. An analysis will be offered whether this depicted role is real or not. During December 21, 2007, the Salt Lake Country Sheriff's Office boasted of seizing more than 400 pounds of exotic, African-based drug called "khat" which is reported to be sweeping the whole United States. The drug is typically chewed and similar with other illegal drugs, produces a feeling of euphoria inducing hypnosis, hyperactivity, hallucinations, violence, suicidal depression and physical exhaustion. Even though not as intense as cocaine, "khat" has the ability of reducing a person's motivation with continued use (Winslow and Reavy 2007). Even though the price of khat is expected to discourage consumption among the low and middle income classes, the police expect that it will be a phenomenal drug for young adults because of it can be chewed instead of being injected or smoked (Winslow and Reavy 2007). The effort of seizing the drugs is a way to combat the problems which is associated with drug addiction once a distribution network is set-up. It should be noted that khat is gaining popularity indicated by the presence of 25 tons of smuggled khat in the United States in 2006 (Winslow and Reavy 2007). In this story, the highlighted police role is crime fighter whereby the police act in order to fight the crime of drug smuggling, illegal drug trafficking, and the likelihood of drug abuse which can disrupt peace and order in the community. In this particular story, I believe that the media has no intention of romanticizing the story by clearly labeling police as a crime fighter. Since the story only talks about the seizure of khat and the likely effects of khat abuse, the role of the police as a crime fighter stated in here is real. I believe that police are really committed in combating drug smuggling, drug trafficking, and drug abuse because it being unable to stop them can post larger problems for them in the future. Social Servant The Associated Press releases a very heart-warming Christmas story of a policeman in Philadelphia. This story relates how transit officer Steven Rocher helps a woman deliver her baby while he is on his way to deliver presents to his mother's home. Hearing a woman scream for help while lying in this sidewalk, this transit officer immediately halted and responded to the woman's plea. Even though inexperienced in the task, he managed to deliver the baby and communicated his gladness that the baby is safe. After the delivery, Rocher also flagged down a colleague in order to bring the mother and the newborn baby to the nearest hospital (PA helps deliver 2007). This story recounts how an officer can be a social servant by going beyond his