An analysis of the various challenges faced by police operating in different kinds of democracies. Through a cross-cultural comparison of the various systems, the work highlights the universal observation that police are an anomaly in a democracy. It examines how various influences - for example, large-scale social violence, a zeal for crime fighting, or vulnerability to temptation - often render the police incapable of behaving in a democratic manner. Chapters explore the experiences of police in emerging democracies (Estonia, Hungary, Macedonia, Poland, the Russian Federation and Slovenia), established democracies (Austria, the UK, the Netherlands and Switzerland), and mixed democracies (South Africa). The book analyzes the similarities and differences of the policing challenges democratic societies face as well as the responses and remedies adopted by police in various countries at different levels of democratic achievement.

In this text, the editors analyze the diverse situations that police forces operate under and the challenges that they face in different kinds of democracies. This cross-cultural comparison of various systems highlights the universal observation that police are a anomaly in a democracy and explores how various influences-for example, large-scale social violence, a zeal for crime fighting, and vulnerability to temptation-often find police incapable of behaving in a democratic manner. Challenges of Policing Democracies goes beyond just showing the similarities and differences of the policing challenges democratic societies face, it also examines the responses and remedies adopted by police in various countries at different levels of democratic achievement and how every society struggles with the challenges of preserving democratic values without sacrificing the effectiveness of policing.