NCJ Number
131913
Journal
Policing and Society Volume: 1 Issue: 4 Dated: (1991) Pages: 299-317
Date Published
1991
Length
19 pages
Annotation
This study of the implementation and non-implementation of the 1839-40 Rural Policing Acts in the two divisions of the county of Sussex challenges the common assumption that there was an inevitable progress towards professional policing in England during the 19th century, following the creation of the Metropolitan Police in 1829, through a smooth succession of statutes.
Abstract
The implementation of the Acts was realized in East Sussex through a determined campaign on the part of the Earl of Chichester, a leading county gandee, against considerable opposition from the ratepayers who had to pay the bill whereas non-implementation in the West was equally the product of another principal grandee's, the Duke of Richmond's, hostile attitude and opposition to the legislation. These contracts were important in galvanizing support from the wealthier members of rural and small-town Victorian communities for the relatively expensive professional policing. Some clear evidence exists that when wealthier people were able to observe the new police in operation, without directly benefiting as in West Sussex, the experience strongly reinforced the belief in the need for professional policing. 73 notes and 24 references (Author abstract modified)