International Journal of Law and Society

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The Model Penal Code and the Sexual Conduct of Police Officers While on Duty

Received: 13 August 2020    Accepted: 24 November 2020    Published: 11 December 2020
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Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to examine the penalties proposed in the Model Penal Code when a police officer engages in sexual conduct while on duty. At issue is whether the Model Penal Code should explicitly make it an enhanced penalty or offense when a law enforcement officer engages in sexual conduct while on duty with any individual, including a child, or is involved in sexual violence of any kind, whether on or off duty. The paper discusses the procedural due process issue, substantive due process issues, and equal protection issues of including an enhanced penalty when a police officer engages in sexual conduct with an individual involved in sexual violence. The work also considers the moral authority of the Model Penal Code as well as public welfare matters when a police officer participates in such behavior. The article concludes by recommending that the Model Penal Code should specifically make it an enhanced penalty or offense when a law enforcement officer engages in sexual conduct while on duty with any individual, including a child, or is involved in sexual violence of any kind, whether on or off duty. The conclusion seems appropriate given that police officers hold the public trust when performing their duties.

DOI 10.11648/j.ijls.20200304.17
Published in International Journal of Law and Society (Volume 3, Issue 4, December 2020)
Page(s) 204-208
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Enhanced Criminal Penalties, Law Enforcement, Model Penal Code, Sexual Conduct

References
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  • APA Style

    Donald Lee Buresh. (2020). The Model Penal Code and the Sexual Conduct of Police Officers While on Duty. International Journal of Law and Society, 3(4), 204-208. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijls.20200304.17

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    Donald Lee Buresh. The Model Penal Code and the Sexual Conduct of Police Officers While on Duty. Int. J. Law Soc. 2020, 3(4), 204-208. doi: 10.11648/j.ijls.20200304.17

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    AMA Style

    Donald Lee Buresh. The Model Penal Code and the Sexual Conduct of Police Officers While on Duty. Int J Law Soc. 2020;3(4):204-208. doi: 10.11648/j.ijls.20200304.17

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  • @article{10.11648/j.ijls.20200304.17,
      author = {Donald Lee Buresh},
      title = {The Model Penal Code and the Sexual Conduct of Police Officers While on Duty},
      journal = {International Journal of Law and Society},
      volume = {3},
      number = {4},
      pages = {204-208},
      doi = {10.11648/j.ijls.20200304.17},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijls.20200304.17},
      eprint = {https://download.sciencepg.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijls.20200304.17},
      abstract = {The purpose of this paper is to examine the penalties proposed in the Model Penal Code when a police officer engages in sexual conduct while on duty. At issue is whether the Model Penal Code should explicitly make it an enhanced penalty or offense when a law enforcement officer engages in sexual conduct while on duty with any individual, including a child, or is involved in sexual violence of any kind, whether on or off duty. The paper discusses the procedural due process issue, substantive due process issues, and equal protection issues of including an enhanced penalty when a police officer engages in sexual conduct with an individual involved in sexual violence. The work also considers the moral authority of the Model Penal Code as well as public welfare matters when a police officer participates in such behavior. The article concludes by recommending that the Model Penal Code should specifically make it an enhanced penalty or offense when a law enforcement officer engages in sexual conduct while on duty with any individual, including a child, or is involved in sexual violence of any kind, whether on or off duty. The conclusion seems appropriate given that police officers hold the public trust when performing their duties.},
     year = {2020}
    }
    

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    AB  - The purpose of this paper is to examine the penalties proposed in the Model Penal Code when a police officer engages in sexual conduct while on duty. At issue is whether the Model Penal Code should explicitly make it an enhanced penalty or offense when a law enforcement officer engages in sexual conduct while on duty with any individual, including a child, or is involved in sexual violence of any kind, whether on or off duty. The paper discusses the procedural due process issue, substantive due process issues, and equal protection issues of including an enhanced penalty when a police officer engages in sexual conduct with an individual involved in sexual violence. The work also considers the moral authority of the Model Penal Code as well as public welfare matters when a police officer participates in such behavior. The article concludes by recommending that the Model Penal Code should specifically make it an enhanced penalty or offense when a law enforcement officer engages in sexual conduct while on duty with any individual, including a child, or is involved in sexual violence of any kind, whether on or off duty. The conclusion seems appropriate given that police officers hold the public trust when performing their duties.
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