Education never ends

Review of Derin/Singelnstein: The Police

Authors

Benjamin Derin is a criminal defense lawyer in Berlin and previously worked as a research assistant at the Ruhr University Bochum. Tobias Singelnstein is Professor of Criminology and Police Research at the University of Bochum and is considered one of the leading experts in the field of police science in Germany. Both authors have many years of experience in analyzing police structures and practices, which is reflected in their differentiated and critical approach. Their interdisciplinary approach combines legal, sociological and criminological perspectives, allowing them to paint a comprehensive picture of the police as an institution.

Background

The book was written against the backdrop of intense social debates about police violence, racism and right-wing extremist structures within the police force, which have increasingly become the focus of public attention in recent years. Events such as the disbanding of the SEK Frankfurt after the discovery of right-wing extremist chat groups, the murder of George Floyd and the subsequent Black Lives Matter protests as well as repeated reports of police violence in Germany form the current context in which the authors situate their work. The increasing public awareness of structural problems in the police force and the calls for reforms at a political and social level have significantly increased the relevance of the topic.

Structure and contents

The book Die Polizei - Helfer, Gegner, Staatsgewalt is divided into five extensive chapters that systematically analyze various aspects of the police as an institution. With a mixture of empirical data, case studies and theoretical considerations, it offers a differentiated examination of the police in Germany.

The first chapter, “The police in society”, focuses on the function and role of the police in a social context. It first deals with the basic tasks of the police, such as averting danger, prosecution and providing assistance in everyday life. A historical overview shows the development of the police from its beginnings to the modern organization. It goes on to analyze the police as an instrument of social order, highlighting the power of the police to define law and order and its impact on society. Finally, the trust of the population in the police is examined, with the authors pointing to systematic inequalities and selective practices that put a strain on this relationship.

In the second chapter, “The police as an organization”, the internal structure of the police is described in detail. This includes the hierarchies, careers and rights of police officers as well as the challenges of recruiting and training new officers. Particular attention is paid to the so-called “cop culture”, a specific police culture that is characterized by solidarity and esprit de corps, but at the same time also promotes isolation from criticism and resistance to change. These cultural dynamics are critically examined in terms of their impact on working methods and the internal error culture.

The third chapter, “Police problems”, is dedicated to the central challenges and areas of conflict in police work. Issues such as police violence, racism and right-wing extremism are examined both in terms of their manifestation and their social and institutional causes. The authors show how these problems are reinforced by structural conditions and cultural practices within the police force. A particular focus is placed on the lack of a culture of error and the deficits in the control of police actions. Here, the authors argue for independent control mechanisms to promote transparency and accountability.

In the fourth chapter, “Police in transition”, the authors analyze the changes in police work in the face of new social challenges. These include the expansion of police tasks due to changing security needs, the influence of police unions on political decisions and the danger of the police becoming independent of democratic control mechanisms. The authors argue that these developments could jeopardize the democratic embedding of the police and call for a clear containment of police powers.

The fifth chapter, “Perspectives”, offers approaches for a reform and reorientation of the police. It highlights the ambivalence of the organization, which acts both as a guarantor of security and as an amplifier of social inequalities. The authors discuss alternative concepts such as “restorative justice” and “transformative justice” and propose a democratization of the police. Concrete proposals such as the decriminalization of certain areas and the strengthening of social institutions are presented as ways to reduce the burden on the police and at the same time increase their effectiveness.

Overall, the book offers a comprehensive and multi-layered analysis of the police as an organization and its role in society. The authors combine theoretical reflections with practical recommendations and thus make an important contribution to the current debate on the future of the police in Germany.

Discussion

The book Die Polizei - Helfer, Gegner, Staatsgewalt. Inspektion einer mächtigen Organisation by Derin and Singelnstein should be acknowledged as a significant and differentiated contribution to the analysis of the police in Germany. The ambivalences of the police institution emerge as a central theme. The authors avoid one-sided polemics and examine the police both as a democratic institution with tasks close to the people and as an actor that reproduces social power relations and inequalities. This ambivalence must be emphasized as a necessary key to reforming and improving the police.

The thematic breadth and the detailed analysis with which the authors present both the structural problems of the police and their organizational peculiarities and the associated social effects are particularly pleasing. Topics such as police violence, racism, discrimination and the lack of a culture of error are discussed in a critical and well-founded manner. The authors classify these grievances in legal and social terms and emphasize that the problems cannot be reduced to individual mistakes, but have structural causes. In contrast to police culture, the description of “cop culture” - characterized by esprit de corps, loyalty and an often problematic isolation from the outside world - clarifies this perspective (see p. 124 ff.).

It should be critically noted that the book often remains rather descriptive and lacks theoretical depth in some cases. Although the authors offer numerous empirical examples and vividly describe the facets of police work, there is a lack of a stringent theoretical framework that could classify the police institution more clearly. Ultimately, however, this is not a specialist book, but a non-fiction book and is therefore aimed at a wider audience, which is to be welcomed.

The concluding perspectives in the book - such as the discussion on democratization, defund and abolish approaches and the idea of a new architecture of security - must be acknowledged as valuable impulses, even if the implementation of such concepts in practice is described as challenging or utopian. I consider the call for more transparency and external control of the police, for example through independent complaints bodies, as well as the emphasis on social responsibility for shaping the police to be further key contributions to an urgently needed reform discourse (see p. 323 ff.).

The book is an indispensable contribution to police research. It sensitizes readers to the ambivalences and challenges of the police and offers both critical insights and practice-oriented impulses without lapsing into sweeping judgements or one-sided criticism. The authors thus succeed in creating a well-founded basis for a differentiated discussion of the police as an institution.

Conclusion

In Die Polizei - Helfer, Gegner, Staatsgewalt, Benjamin Derin and Tobias Singelnstein have created a work that takes a differentiated and critical look at the German police force. The authors impressively show the extent to which the police are caught between democratic demands and the reproduction of social inequalities. Central topics such as racism, right-wing extremist tendencies and the lack of a culture of error are analyzed in depth and linked to current social developments. In particular, the depiction of “cop culture” and the demand for more transparency and external control underline the urgency of reforms.

The book also offers valuable impulses for a reorientation of the police, for example through approaches such as restorative justice or the democratization of police action. Even if the feasibility of these proposals seems utopian in part, the book provides an important basis for the discourse on the future of the police. Critically, it should be noted that the book remains descriptive in parts and a stringent theoretical framework could have been developed more strongly.

Overall, however, the book is an indispensable contribution to the debate on the role of the police in a democratic society. It raises awareness of the ambivalences and challenges of the institution and gives new impetus to both academic and social discourse.