Course Detail

CJ 310 Law Enforcement Process and Policy

CJ 310 IS Sec 3, University of Mississippi
[See UM Catalog for Description]

3 credit hours

Instructor Information:

Instructor name:
Dr. Jeffery M. Johnson

Dr. Jeffery Johnson has taught with UM-IS since 2012 and has been a member of the UM faculty since 2005. He is a certified as an Expert Gang Specialist by the National Gang Crime Research Center and is a former police officer with the Kansas Highway Patrol- Capitol Police.

Dr. Johnson coordinates the criminal justice offerings at the DeSoto Center in Southaven.

• Dr. Johnson received both his Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice and his Masters of Criminal Justice from Washburn University of Topeka, Kansas.
• Dr. Johnson received a Graduate Certificate in Homeland Security from Texas A&M and his Doctorate of Professional Studies from Delta State University.

Contact Information:

If you have questions concerning the content of the course, you may contact the instructor directly using the Email Your Instructor link in the Lessons or Content page. NOTE: Whenever sending email, please be sure to indicate your course title and number in the subject line. You can expect a response within 72 hours, although it may be longer on weekends. Many instructors reply within 24 hours.

For lesson or test administration issues, please contact the iStudy department:

Course Description

This 15-lesson Independent Study course, Law Enforcement Process and Policy, is an analysis of police functions and problems commonly encountered in the performance of those functions. Problem- solving methods and techniques are reviewed, discussed, and practiced. Each lesson includes a reading assignment and assignment(s), to be followed by an eventual midterm exam and an eventual final exam.

This course provides a thorough overview of what police supervisors and administrators need to know. The text examines police administration from four distinct perspectives: a systems perspective (the interrelatedness among units and organizations); a traditional, structural perspective (administrative principles, management functions, and the importance of written guidelines); a human behavioral perspective (the human element in organizations); and a strategic management perspective (communications and information systems, performance evaluation, strategies and tactics, and promising approaches to increasing police agency effectiveness).

Pre-requisites: CJ 100 & 110 or consent of instructor.

Textbook Information:

Textbook information will be provided upon enrollment in your iStudy course.

Course Objectives:

Objectives include (but are not limited to):

• Contrast the three eras of policing and environmental factors that have shaped them.
• Explain how the Bill of Rights and democratically inspired legal restraints on law enforcement agencies help ensure personal freedoms.
• List and discuss core operational strategies of modern law enforcement agencies.
• Describe the police working personality, and the relationship to the police subculture.
• Delineate guidelines for the use of force.
• Describe different types of corruption and identify methods for building police integrity.
• Explain police discretion and how it affects the practice of contemporary law enforcement.
• Identify common sources of lawsuits against the police and methods for reducing their incidence.
• Provide examples of the exponential impact of technology on law enforcement operations.

Course Outline:

This course consists of 15 instructional modules (or lessons) and 2 proctored examinations.

You MUST take the syllabus quiz within 2 weeks of enrolling or you will be dropped from the course. NOTE: you must pass the Syllabus and Orientation Quiz for the course materials to appear on the Lessons page.

Grading:

The grading format is as follows:
90 - 100% = A
80 - 89% = B
70 - 79% = C
60 - 69% = D
Below 59% = F

FAILURE TO TAKE THE FINAL EXAM WILL RESULT IN FAILURE OF THE COURSE.

You must submit the lessons required to take the course exam(s). Lessons required but not submitted will receive a grade of zero. For the final exam, all coursework must be submitted and graded.