Imagine yourself being interviewed for an entry-level police officer position by three high-ranking members of a police agency. You will respond to three different situations involving corruption. This assignment will help you apply what you have learned about ethical leadership to real-world situations. You will need to consider the scenarios carefully, craft an answer to each scenario, and have research to defend your answer. In an interviewing situation, the interviewer may challenge your answer, even if it is the appropriate answer. That is why it is important to have a prepared argument that includes supporting research.

You will need to respond to the following three situations.

Situation A As a newly hired police officer, you respond to an alarm call at 3 a.m. with your field training officer. Upon arrival, you find that a pharmacy has been broken into, and when you walk inside, you see another officer already on scene. This officer, who you know has 30 years on the job, takes a candy bar worth $1 off the shelf and begins to eat it. It is clear that he did not pay for it and has no intention of leaving money behind.

Will you do or say anything about this situation? If you decide to do something, what will your action entail? If you decide not to react, provide a rationale for your choice.

Situation B As a newly hired police officer, you work daily with a field training officer as well as three other officers on the 11 p.m.-7 a.m. shift. You have noticed on several occasions that there is an odor of liquor when one particular officer comes into the locker room before the shift. You have had conversations with him, and he has told you that he goes out to dinner before he comes into work and has a couple drinks but that it is no big deal. This particular field training officer has a lot of experience and is trusted within the community and organization. When you were hired, you were told that the organization is implementing a plan to weed out corruption that is occurring in the field. The plan being implemented is not about officers drinking on the job, but you are concerned that if you do not say something regarding this behavior, he is going to hurt someone. You are worried that if you do say something, there may be retaliation against you.

Explain what you will do in this situation. Will you say something to your field training officer? Why or why not?

Situation C For the final question of your interview, the interviewers tell you to pretend for a moment that you are the new chief of police in their police department. You are aware that the department has had numerous substantiated cases of corruption ranging from officers taking bribes from drug dealers to more minor offenses of officers accepting free food and coffee while they are on duty. You are also aware that one of your executive officers, a member of your management team, has been the subject of the highest number of investigations of corruption, but each time he has been exonerated.

Explain what actions you will take that will make an immediate impact on changing the culture of corruption within the department. What will you do long-term about this issue of corruption in your agency? Also explain how your actions in your professional and personal life will make it easier or more difficult for you to change the culture of corruption that exists in the agency.