Law Enforcement Challenges

Law Enforcement Challenges

Law enforcement is described as the individuals and agencies responsible for enforcing laws and maintaining public order and public safety. It includes the prevention, detection, and investigation of crime and the apprehension and detention of individuals suspected of violating the law (Law Enforcement, n.d.). Law enforcement is one of the most challenging careers one could choose. As mentioned above, there are so many different jobs in the law enforcement career. With the vast array of duties law enforcement hold, there comes a vast array of challenges.

To begin, one such duty of law enforcement is to investigate exploitation, cyberstalking, and obscenity. As with other duties, there are plenty of challenges that arise from this specific duty. It is intrinsically more difficult to enforce the laws governing online behavior than it is to enforce “traditional” laws (Shinder, 2011). Some law enforcement agencies shy away from investigating and enforcing these types of crimes due to the sheer difficulties they encounter.

Firstly, there are issues with jurisdiction. This concept pertains to which agency or court has the authority to administer justice in a particular matter, as well as the scope of their authority (Shinder, 2011). The jurisdiction of law enforcement is based on various things. The branch of law (criminal, civil, and regulatory), type of case, grade of offense, and monetary damages are a few of the main topics that need to be addressed when determining the jurisdiction of law enforcement. Other topics that need to be addressed include the level of government and geographic area (Shinder, 2011).

Secondly, even before the issue of jurisdiction comes up, there comes the issue of discovering where and who the criminal is. This is a major issue when it comes to exploitation, cyberstalking, and obscenity. There are so many different ways to hide one’s identity (Shinder, 2011). There are many services...