Police are agents or agencies, usually of the executive, empowered to enforce the law and to effect public and social order through the legitimatized use of force. The term is most commonly associated with police departments of a state that are authorized to exercise the police power of that state within a defined legal or territorial area of responsibility. The word comes via French from the Latin politia (“civil administration”), which itself derives from the Ancient Greek πόλις, for polis ("city"). The first police force comparable to present-day police was established in 1667 under King Louis XIV in France, although modern police usually trace their origins to the 1800 establishment of the Marine Police in London, the Glasgow Police, and the Napoleonic police of Paris. The first modern police force is also commonly said to be the London Metropolitan Police, established in 1829, which promoted the preventive role of police as a deterrent to urban crime and disorder. Law enforcement however has only ever constituted a small portion of policing activity. Policing has included an array of activities in different contexts, but the predominant ones are concerned with order maintenance and the provision of services. Alternative names for police force include constabulary, gendarmerie, police department, police service, crime prevention, protective services or law enforcement agency, and members can be police officers, troopers, sheriffs, constables, rangers, or peace officers. Russian police and police of the Soviet-era Eastern Europe are (or were) called militsiya. (more)
Genres: politics
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Police officer:
A police officer (also known as a policeman or police constable, and colloquially as copper, cop or bobby (on the beat)) is a warranted worker of a police force. As well as general policing, officers can be trained in special duties such as counter-t
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Constable:
A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions.
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Gendarmerie:
A gendarmerie or gendarmery ( , or /ˌʒɑndɑrməˈriː/ after the French) is a military body charged with police duties among civilian populations. The members of such a body are called gendarmes. The term maréchaussée (or marshalcy) can also be used (e.g
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Militsiya:
Militia (мили́ция, mʲi'lʲitsɨja; мiлiцiя; мiлíцыя; милиция; milicja; miliţia; milica; milicija/милиција; милиција) was used as a short official name of the police in several former communist states, despite its original military connotation (see: Mil
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Prefecture of Police:
The Prefecture of Police (Préfecture de Police), headed by the Prefect of Police (Préfet de Police), is an agency of the Government of France (and part of the French National Police) which provides the police force for the city of Paris and the surro
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City of Glasgow Police:
The City of Glasgow Police was one of the first professional police forces in modern history. In the 17th century, Scottish cities used to hire watchmen to guard the streets at night, augmenting a force of unpaid citizen constables. On June 30 1800 t
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Crime:
Crime is the breach of a rule or law for which a punishment may ultimately be prescribed by some governing authority or force. The word crime originates from the Latin crimen (genitive criminis), from the Latin root cernō and Greek κρινω = "I judge".
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State:
A state is a political association with effective sovereignty over a geographic area. These may be nation states, sub-national states or multinational states. A state usually includes the set of institutions that claim the authority to make the rules
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Constabulary:
Constabulary may have several definitions. *A civil, non-paramilitary police force consisting of police officers called constables. This is the usual definition in Britain, in which all county police forces once bore the title (and some still do). Se
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Public administration:
Public administration can be broadly described as the development, implementation and study of branches of government policy. Public administration is linked to pursuing the public good by enhancing civil society and social justice. Though public adm
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Criminal justice:
Criminal justice is the system of practices, and organizations, used by national and local governments, directed at maintaining social control, deter and controlling crime, and sanctioning those who violate laws with criminal penalties. The primary a
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Chief of police:
Chief of Police is the title typically given to the head of a police department, particularly in North America. Similar alternate titles include Police Commissioner, Police Superintendent. and Chief Constable. In contrast to a Sheriff, who is general
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Law enforcement agency:
Law enforcement agency (LEA) is a term used to describe either an organisation that enforces the laws of one or more governing bodies, or an organisation that actively and directly assists in the enforcement of laws. In doing so, the LEA assists the
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Police state:
The term police state is a term for a state in which the government exercises rigid and, in many peoples' opinions, repressive controls over the social, economic and political life of the population, especially by means of a secret police force which
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List of basic law enforcement topics:
Law enforcement is the activity of any law enforcement agency, which is any organization that enforces the laws of one or more governing bodies, or an organization that actively and directly assists in the enforcement of laws. In doing so, law enforc
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List of law enforcement agencies:
A law enforcement agency (LEA) is any agency which enforces the law. This may be a local or state police, federal agencies such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) or the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). It could also refer to a nation
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Fraternal Order of Police:
The Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) is an organization of sworn law enforcement officers in the United States. It claims a membership of over 325,000 members organized in 2100 local chapters (lodges), organized into local lodges, state lodges, and th
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Police rank:
Lists of the ranks of various police forces:
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Law enforcement by country:
In many countries, particularly those with a federal system of government, there may be several police or police-like organizations, each serving different levels of government and enforcing different subsets of the applicable law.
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Sheriff:
Sheriff is both a political and a legal office held under English common law, Scots law or U.S. common law, or the person who holds such office. The term "sheriff" originates from the older office position of "shire reeve".
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Police power:
Police power is the capacity of a state to regulate behaviours and enforce order within its territory, often framed in terms of public welfare, security, morality, and safety. Police power is legally considered an inherent power, limited only by proh
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Detective:
A detective is an investigator, either a member of a police agency or a private person. They may be known as private investigators (P.I.s or "Private I's", hence the play-on-words, "Private Eyes"). Informally, and primarily in fiction, a detective is
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SWAT:
S.W.A.T (Special Weapons And Tactics) is a type of civilian elite paramilitary unit in American police departments that are trained to perform exceptionally dangerous, high-risk operations that fall outside of the abilities of regular patrol officers
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Los Angeles Police Department:
The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) is the police department of the City of Los Angeles, California. With over 9,600 sworn officers and 3,000 non-sworn staff, covering an area of with a population of more than 3.8 million people, it is the fifth
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Law enforcement in the United Kingdom:
Law enforcement in the United Kingdom is regulated by the laws of the appropriate country of the United Kingdom, i.e., Scotland, Northern Ireland, England and Wales (administration of police matters is not generally affected by the Government of Wale
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Search and seizure:
Search and seizure is a legal procedure used in many common law countries whereby police or other authorities and their agents, who suspect that a crime has been committed, do a search of a person's property and confiscate any relevant evidence to th
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Police Service of Northern Ireland:
The Police Service of Northern Ireland (Seirbhís Póilíneachta Thuaisceart Éireann) is the police service that covers Northern Ireland. It is the successor to the Royal Ulster Constabulary which, in turn, was the successor to the Royal Irish Constabul
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Chicago Police Department:
The Chicago Police Department, also known as the CPD, is the principal law enforcement agency of the City of Chicago, Illinois, in the United States, under the jurisdiction of the city mayor. It is the largest police department in the Midwest and the
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Toronto Police Service:
The Toronto Police Service (TPS), formerly the Metropolitan Toronto Police, is the police force for the City of Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
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Cuerpo Nacional de Policía (Spain):
Policía Nacional (actually Cuerpo Nacional de Policía, "National Police Corps") is the countrywide urban police agency of Spain. These forces are under the sole authority of Spain's Ministry of the Interior. They handle criminal, judicial, terrorism
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Probable cause:
In United States criminal law, probable cause refers to the standard by which a police officer has the right to make an arrest, conduct a personal or property search, or to obtain a warrant for arrest. It is also used to refer to the standard to whic
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Police authority:
A police authority in the United Kingdom, is a body charged with securing efficient and effective policing of an area served by a territorial police force or the area and/or activity policed by a special police force. Separate arrangements exist for
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Miranda warning:
In the United States, the Miranda warning is a warning given by police to criminal suspects in police custody, or in a custodial situation, before they are asked questions relating to the commission of a crime. A custodial situation is where the susp
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Auxiliary police:
Auxiliary police (also called special police or special constables) are usually the part-time reserves of a regular police force. They may be armed or unarmed. They may be unpaid volunteers or paid members of the police service with which they are af
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Community policing:
Community policing or neighbourhood policing is a policing strategy and philosophy based on the notion that community interaction and support can help control crime, with community members helping to identify suspects, detain vandals and bring proble
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Vigiles:
The Vigiles or more properly the Vigiles Urbani ("watchmen of the City") or Cohortes Vigilum ("cohorts of the watchmen") were the firefighters and police of Ancient Rome.
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Problem-oriented policing:
Problem-oriented policing (POP), coined by University of Wisconsin-Madison professor Herman Goldstein, is a policing strategy that involves the identification and analysis of specific crime and disorder problems, in order to develop effective respons
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Orlando Winfield Wilson:
Orlando Winfield Wilson (May 15, 1900-October 18, 1972), also known as O.W. Wilson, was an influential leader in policing, having served as Superintendent of Police of the Chicago Police Department, chief of police in Fullerton, California and Wichit
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Calls for service:
Calls for service generally refers to assignments that are typically distributed to public safety professionals that require their presence to resolve, correct or assist a particular situation. The calls are generally initiated by the public and rela
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Bicycle:
The bicycle, cycle, or bike is a pedal-driven, human-powered vehicle with two wheels attached to a frame, one behind the other. Bicycles were introduced in the 19th century and now number about one billion worldwide. They are the principal means of t
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Militia:
The term militia is commonly used today to refer to a military force composed of ordinary citizens to provide defense, emergency law enforcement, or paramilitary service, in times of emergency without being paid a regular salary or committed to a fix
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Home Secretary:
The Secretary of State for the Home Department, commonly known as the Home Secretary, is the minister in charge of the United Kingdom Home Office and is one of the Great Offices of State. The Home Secretary is responsible for internal affairs in Engl
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Uniform:
A uniform is a set of standard clothing worn by members of an organization while participating in that organization's activity. People performing religious activities have often worn standard costumes since the dawn of recorded history. Other early e
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Robert Peel:
Sir Robert Peel, 2nd Baronet (5 February 1788 - 2 July 1850) was the Conservative Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from December 10, 1834 to April 8, 1835, and again from August 30, 1841 to June 29, 1846. He helped create the modern concept of th
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Whistle:
A simple whistle is a woodwind instrument which produces sound from a stream of forced air. Many types exist, from small police and sports whistles (also called pea whistles), to much larger train whistles, which are steam whistles specifically desig
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Henry Fielding:
Henry Fielding (April 22, 1707 - October 8, 1754) was an English novelist and dramatist known for his rich earthy humour and satirical prowess, and as the author of the novel Tom Jones. Aside from his literary achievements, he has a significant place
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Internal affairs (law enforcement):
The internal affairs (United States terminology) division of a law enforcement agency investigates incidents and plausible suspicions of lawbreaking and professional misconduct attributed to officers on the force. In different systems, internal affai
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Miranda v. Arizona:
Miranda v. Arizona (consolidated with Westover v. United States, Vignera v. New York, and California v. Stewart), , was a landmark 5-4 decision of the United States Supreme Court which was argued February 28-March 1, 1966 and decided June 13, 1966. T
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Deadly force:
Deadly force is defined as the force in which a person uses causing, or that a person knows or should know would create a substantial risk of causing, death or serious bodily harm. The use of Deadly Force is justified only under conditions of extreme
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Polizia di Stato:
The Polizia di Stato (State Police or PdS) is one of the national police forces of Italy. It is responsible for providing general police duties in Italy; patrolling motorways (autostrada), railways, airports, customs (together with the Guardia di Fin
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Special Investigations Unit:
The Special Investigations Unit (“SIU” or the “Unit”) of Ontario, Canada, is a civilian agency responsible for investigating circumstances involving police and civilians that have resulted in a death, serious injury, or allegations of sexual assault.
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Use of force:
The term use of force refers to the right of an individual or authority to settle conflicts or prevent certain actions by applying measures to either: a) dissuade another party from a particular course of action, or b) physically intervene to stop th
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Polizeiwissenschaft:
Polizeiwissenschaft (German for "Police science", though "Polizei" may in this case be better translated as "Public Policy" or "Politics" in a broad sense) was a discipline born in the first third of the 18th century which lasted until the middle of
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Thief-taker:
A thief-taker was a private individual hired to capture criminals. The widespread establishment of professional police in England did not occur until the 19th century. With the rising crime rate and newspapers to bring this to the attention of the pu
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Macdaniel affair:
The Macdaniel affair or Macdaniel scandal occurred in England in 1754 when it came to light that a gang, led by Stephen MacDaniel, had been prosecuting innocent men to their deaths in order to collect reward money. It was an unintended consequence of
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