Law enforcement is divided into three major eras throughout history. These eras are the political era, the reform era and the community era. The political era that took place between 1840-1930 was characterized by five points, which was the authority was coming from politicians and the law, a broad social service function, decentralized organization, an intimate relationship with the community, and the extensive use of foot patrol. The downside to the political era was that the police got its authority from the politics and the law, the close tie with politics posed as a problem.

"In New York, for example, the first chief of police could not dismiss officers under his command. The tenure of the chief was limited to one year. Consequently, any early New York cop who was solidly supported by his alderman and assistant alderman could disobey a police superior with virtual impunity. So while the British

The civil unrest of the mid-1960's through the mid-1970's was the impetus for the advocacy of the 'third wave' of major law enforcement reform.

Another type of patrol that we have seen incorporated into law enforcement is the use of aircraft as a method of patrol. It has been said that an airborne unit is as effective as 15 patrol cars because of the fact that it has 30 times the visual range of the ground unit, the downside to that is, of course, that the airborne officer just can't do what the ground troops do. Because of the high visibility of the aircraft patrol, it is very effective in stakeout situations, search and rescue, and even pursuits. Aircraft patrol is very expensive however and most of the time is only used in large cities.

Those for the legalization of certain drugs claim that the cost of what the drug problem is on our government can be used to make treatment centers for addicts if they were legalized. Organized crime would declined because legalization would wipe out their source of funds, Foreign affairs in Latin America would get better because the crackdown on drugs strains out relationship, and the revenue of the taxes placed on drugs could be used for treatment programs.

The second era in law enforcement was known as the reform era which took place in 1930-1980. This era is recognized by the characteristics of the authority coming from the law and professionalism, crime control as their primary function, centralized, efficient organization, professional remoteness from the community, and an emphasis on preventive motorized patrol and rapid response to crime. A major advocate of this era was a man by the name of August Vollmer, who was the town marshal and then police chief in Berkeley, California, from 1905-1932.

The community era (1980-present) is the third era of law enforcement. This modern-day era is characterized by the authority coming from community support, law and professionalism, provision of a broad range of services, including crime control, Decentralized organization with more authority given to the patrol officers, an intimate relationship with the community, and the use of foot patrol and a problem-solving approach.

This information age has also changed the way evidence is gathered. There is now the technology to trace an individuals DNA, rather than just getting fingerprints from a crime scene. Fibers from clothing can now be traced, paint transferred from one object to another during the commission of a crime, and ballistics from a firearm are just a few of the scientific advancements that aids the police in the war against crime.

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Approximate Word count = 2364
Approximate Pages = 9 (250 words per page double spaced)