INTERVIEW ANALYSIS

Interview Analysis

Interview Analysis

Officer 1: James McGinty, Patrolman, Pasadena Police Department.

When interviewing Patrolman McGinty, I found the following to be his impressions of the police force in general. Officer McGinty spoke of why ethics and character are important in the field of law enforcement. His response was that ethics and character go hand in hand. In law enforcement it seems that there are so many reasons to do the right thing. Ethics are as important, if not more important, than character. One can display an incredible character, but when it comes time to follow the rules of ethics, the temptations of simple favors by the law-abiding citizens of the community can sway an officer's choices, and can cause them to make a poor choice. Even the slightest favor from someone can lead to a dangerous future occurrence.

Officer 2: Peter Gonzales, Sgt. Pasadena Independent School District Officer.

I asked the same six questions of Sgt. Gonzales that I asked of Officer McGinty. The first question was: why are ethics and character so important in the field of law enforcement?

Sgt. Gonzales provided me with some examples of his stance on good character and ethics. To paraphrase his answer, he said; in this field a person is dealing with a lot of potential for corruption. For instance say you are an officer and you bust someone who has a lot of drugs on them. You can be ethical and be of good character and turn the drugs in when the guy is arrested or you can take the drugs, re-sell them and make a profit for yourself. Or, say you are an officer and you are arresting someone who is being very mouthy and making you mad. You can be ethical and of good character by ignoring him, placing cuffs on ...