A veteran police chief once said there are three reasons people are drawn to police work:
- To help other people
- Action and excitement
- Authority
We don’t want police who take the job for anything other than the first reason. Those are the “good cops.” But we have *a lot* of police who have taken the job for the latter two reasons. These tend not only to be “bad cops,” but also people whose mere presence in the ranks tends to poison and corrupt the police force.
The action junkies unnecessarily escalate situations so that they can get their adrenaline fix. They seek pretexts to speed, chase, draw weapons – their default solution to every problem they encounter on the job is the use of force. Too often these police leave a trail of victimized citizens and property damage. We do not need people like this in the police, and we cannot afford them. Action junkies should not be given a badge and a gun. They should find other jobs, and if they can’t get excitement from their job they should take up exciting hobbies.
The authoritarian police are essentially sociopaths. Police forces shouldn’t be providing a salary and pension for adult bullies. Police exist to protect and to serve the public. The moment an officer shows a hint of entitlement, or of irritation at a perceived lack of deference to his badge, he should be shown the door. Police who think they are above their fellow citizens because of their office are toxic to their colleagues in uniform, to their communities, and to the very foundation of our system of law and order.
Federalist 
Well said! Can the ongoing discussion be about how to train cops to do a hard job while confronting their own faults? Cops are attracted to police work because they’re authoritarian to begin with. Scripture says: “We have learned by sad experience that it is the nature and disposition of almost all men, as soon as they get a little authority, as they suppose, they will immediately begin to exercise unrighteous dominion.” Doctrine & Covenants 121:39