The police act as the legitimate peacekeepers of our society and maintain the fine line between lawful and illegal acts . This is an important task that requires disciplined individuals who apply the law of the land with the utmost seriousness. The state gives the police the power to carry out their work with the discretion that an officer may choose to draw his weapon, make an arrest, offer a ticket for an offense, conduct a search or shooting a gun. An example of police discretion is that when you are stopped by the police for speeding, they may let you go with a warning or book you a ticket based on your appeal to police discretion. Other instances where police discretion may be used are domestic violence within a household, potential hate crimes committed against people, and crimes involving people with mental illnesses. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an Original Essay While they have the authority to exercise discretion, they must also adhere to proper regulations and follow everything by the book. For my essay, I will discuss cases of police discretion during acts of traffic violations. Our roads are our daily livelihood, and the state offers officials who are the traffic police to monitor them and ensure that motorists obey the traffic rules so that chaos does not break out on the roads. This discretion in traffic is found in legislation and involves questions of respecting speed limits which, in relation to human behavior, make it very difficult for drivers to respect. Thus, when a police officer suspects that a traffic violation is about to occur, he can choose to stop the motorist, issue an arrest warrant to the offender, offer him a ticket or to bring him to appear in court. The officer's discretion, however, may vary depending on the offense or how the officer views the situation. He/she may not see the need for a person to spend days at a court hearing if the offense has caused no harm, so he/she may let you go with a warning. This discretionary power, however, varies between police officers and some may not take the offense lightly. Discretion has been around for many years, and while it has its drawbacks, it has proven to be necessary in handling situations with people. These situations were grouped into three main groups: the delinquent, the systematic and the situation. The offender variable, for example, leads the police officer to take into account the characteristics of the individual which may include his race, his economic situation, his age but also his state of health. An officer may consider punishing a young, inexperienced driver more harshly than an older driver. Situational variables, on the other hand, dictate the scale of the offense committed, the area around which the offense was committed, etc. Crimes committed around educational institutions can be taken much more seriously than in other areas, given that they involve students. However, most discretionary powers may be dictated by legal systems and community expectations. Systematic violations, on the other hand, arecontrolled by various factors such as public image among the community, revenue generation by the state and also productivity of the state. A city, for example, may want to increase revenue by focusing on a traffic crime; this is a win-win situation since the police bring in money for the city while also punishing offenders for the offense committed . If most members of the community do not agree with the way officers carry out their work, they will not see the need to follow the law because it is a two-way transaction of respect between them and the agents. Discretion, however, is accompanied by some incidents during the work. Citizens complain about how police officers sometimes harass them for minor offenses simply because one of them is of a particular race, gender or even age. This has caused much controversy in most countries, with some abusing the state power assigned to them. As they exercise their discretion over minor crimes, more and more people are convicted and sentenced to prison. This has led to overcrowding in some prisons, forcing the state to invest more revenue into the system. Processing these so-called criminals in court also costs the state money, because the judges who pass these sentences must be paid regularly. The procedures are also not necessarily safe and may take some time in court. This has given rise to debate over whether the police should be given discretion at any particular level, as this has led to abuse in some cases, notably among corrupt officials. Newer policies, however, want to be implemented so that police can gain additional powers and use discretion less frequently, which could reduce harm. Some police strategies need to be evaluated, and others include preventive patrols, emergency responses, criminal investigations, problem solving, and responses to routine incidents. Since it is at these times that police exercise discretion, steps must be taken to ensure that no harassment occurs. An officer, for example, can determine whether it is necessary to control a situation by arresting a suspect or letting him go, depending on his view of the situation. The officer should not be biased, but rather evaluate the offense and determine whether the case requires making an arrest or letting the suspect go. During a criminal investigation incident, for example, an officer may have a family member involved, which can cause obstacles to the investigation. The officer may become more lenient toward their loved one or, in some cases, get rid of evidence linked to the suspect. This can lead to obstruction of justice and allow a guilty suspect to go scot-free if favors are granted by the officer. The same is true for emergency response in which police sometimes respond more quickly to certain neighborhoods than others simply because of the higher social status or racial profile of the community residing there. Other officers also choose to provide their services to high-ranking government officials rather than serving the public simply because they can pay high fees to afford their services rather than helping a normal civilian who does not have the ways to meet their needs. Discretion has both positive and negative consequences. It also has an effectiveness which has an impact on the..