University Report: Analysis of News Article on Police Misconduct, Law

This report analyzes a news article concerning a former East Haven police officer who was sentenced for violating the civil rights of Latino community members. The officer was found guilty of multiple offenses, including making arrests without proper justification, using excessive force, and obstructing a federal investigation. The analysis delves into the legal, ethical, and social implications of the officer's actions, examining the breach of constitutional rights, ethical duties, and the impact on the legitimacy of the East Haven Police Department. The report references relevant legal and ethical principles, highlighting the consequences faced by the officer, including imprisonment and supervised release. The case underscores the importance of upholding laws and ethical standards within law enforcement, emphasizing the consequences of misconduct and the need for accountability.

Running head: NEWS ARTICLE ANALYSIS
NEWS ARTICLE ANALYSIS
Name of Student
Name of University
Author Note

2NEWS ARTICLE ANALYSIS
In a 2014 news report it was observed that a police officer was arrested and sentence
for 60 months of imprisonment and one year of supervised release. The police officer was
sentenced for the violation of civil rights of the individuals residing in the community of East
Haven. In the case it was observed that the former East Haven police officer had been
violating the civil rights of the Latino members of the community of East Haven (Justice.gov,
2020). There have been many complaints against him for the arrest of people without any
proper justification and for the use of cruel and excess force while executing searches that are
illegal. The actions conveyed by him was assaulting demeaning, intimidating and even
humiliating people while making them scared of the police department. His acts are
considered not only as illegal but also unethical as well as immoral. Legally he was charged
for violating the constitutional rights granted to the people. His sentencing included
conspiracy against the rights of people, depriving those rights to make arrest without any
proper reason; and obstructing federal investigation by making false report (Moore, 2017).
The investigation for the matter was done by the Civil Rights Squad under the New York
Field Office of the FBI. It is the duty of a police officer to be upholding laws and orders for
racialism. However, in this case the police itself was seen as discriminating based on racism.
The social norm principle provides the unwritten laws which can be seen as being imposed
and accepted for certain specific reasons. The social norms principles provide the moral
standards which the police are required to follow for ensuring the justice (Groff, 2015).
However in the given scene the police officer can be considered as breaking the standard
norms. It is seen that the duties of a police officer is to protect the citizens. However the
misconduct by the police officer was seen as to frame the police being fearful. This in turn
questioned the legitimacy of the East Haven Police Dept. The decisions for considering right
and wrong conduct can be seen as falling under the ethics and moral issues. The difference

3NEWS ARTICLE ANALYSIS
between ethics and morality with law can be seen as being provided in the fact that in the
legal system legislations can be seen to demanding. In the context it was seen that the breach
happening was both legal and ethical issues. The idea to be lawful, ethical and moral
simultaneously is often seen to be very difficult to achieve. The idea is that an individual can
be any two together but not in all three. In context of the case study it can be seen that the
police officer had been in the breach of his ethical duties. The officer had repeatedly
misbehaved with the Latin American people by humiliating them, arresting or physically
harming the people. The police was both ethically and legally wrong. The consequences that
had to suffer from were manifold. As per the newspaper report the police officer who was
guilty of the offence was charged with many offences. He was further seen as to plead guilty
on many of the appeals.

4NEWS ARTICLE ANALYSIS
Reference
Groff, E. R. (2015). Informal social control and crime events. Journal of Contemporary
Criminal Justice, 31(1), 90-106.
Justice.gov (2020). Former East Haven Police Officer Sentenced To Five Years In Prison
For Criminal Civil Rights Violations. [online] Justice.gov. Available at:
https://www.justice.gov/usao-ct/pr/former-east-haven-police-officer-sentenced-five-
years-prison-criminal-civil-rights [Accessed 10 Jan. 2020].
Moore, W. D. (2017). Constitutional rights and powers of the people (Vol. 4833). Princeton
University Press.
Tonry, M. (2014). Legal and ethical issues in the prediction of recidivism. Federal
Sentencing Reporter, 26(3), 167-176.