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{{Criminal law}}
{{as of|2020}}, more than
Law enforcement operates primarily through governmental [[police]] agencies. There are 17,985 police agencies in the United States which include [[list of largest local police departments in the United States|local police departments]], [[Sheriffs in the United States|county sheriff's offices]], [[State trooper (United States)|state troopers]], and [[Federal law enforcement in the United States|federal law enforcement agencies]]. The law enforcement purposes of these agencies are the investigation of suspected criminal activity, referral of the results of investigations to state or federal [[Prosecutor (United States)|prosecutors]], and the temporary detention of suspected criminals pending judicial action. Law enforcement agencies, are also commonly charged with the responsibilities of deterring criminal activity and preventing the successful commission of crimes in progress. Other duties may include the service and enforcement of [[warrant (law)|warrants]], [[writ]]s, and other [[Court order|orders of the courts]].
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In 2017, sociologist [[Alex S. Vitale]] authored ''[[The End of Policing]]'', calling for police abolition as opposed to reforms.<ref>{{Cite news|title=How Much Do We Need The Police?|url=https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2020/06/03/457251670/how-much-do-we-need-the-police|access-date=2020-06-10|website=NPR.org|date=June 3, 2020|language=en|last1=Donnella|first1=Leah}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Siegel|first=Zachary|date=2020-06-04|title='Starve the Beast': A Q&A With Alex S. Vitale on Defunding the Police|journal=The Nation|language=en-US|url=https://www.thenation.com/article/society/alex-vitale-defund-police-interview/|access-date=2020-06-10|issn=0027-8378}}</ref>
Police abolition spiked in popularity following the [[murder of George Floyd]] by Minneapolis Police officer [[Derek Chauvin]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Google Trends|url=https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=all&geo=US&q=police%20abolition|access-date=2020-06-10|website=Google Trends|language=en-US}}</ref> A super-majority of the Minneapolis City Council (9 of 12 council members) pledged in June 2020 to dismantle the Minneapolis Police Department.<ref>{{Cite news|last1=Searcey|first1=Dionne|last2=Eligon|first2=John|date=2020-06-07|title=Minneapolis Will Dismantle Its Police Force, Council Members Pledge|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/07/us/minneapolis-police-abolish.html|access-date=2020-06-10|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> The Minneapolis Police Department's funding was ultimately restored to its original levels after a public ballot measure "to remove the Police Department and replace it..." (''City Question 2 – Department of Public Safety'') was rejected by voters.
==Entry qualifications==
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Through the NLETS network, law enforcement and criminal justice agencies can access a wide range of information, from standard driver license and vehicle queries to criminal history and [[Interpol]] information.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nlets.org/about/what-we-do |title=What We Do - Nlets |website=nlets.org |access-date=November 14, 2016}}</ref> Operations consist of nearly 1.5 billion transactions a year to over one million PC, mobile, and handheld devices in the U.S. and Canada at 45,000 user agencies, and to 1.3 million individual users.<ref name=":0" />
=== Collection and
{{further|Criminal records in the United States}}
The [[Freedom of Information Act (United States)|Freedom of Information Act]] along with similar state-level legislation such as the [[California Public Records Act]] places a variety of information possessed by the government, including law enforcement, into the public domain and makes it available for request.<ref>{{cite web |title=California Public Records Act FAQs |url=https://post.ca.gov/California-Public-Records-Act-FAQs |website=State of California Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training |access-date=2 May 2024}}</ref> Agencies collect, report, and publish a variety of statistical data, such as the [[National Incident-Based Reporting System]] and [[Uniform Crime Reports]].<ref>{{cite web |title=National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) |url=https://www.fbi.gov/how-we-can-help-you/more-fbi-services-and-information/ucr/nibrs |website=FBI.gov |access-date=2 May 2024}}</ref>
Generally, aside from [[Expungement in the United States|expunged]], [[Record sealing|sealed]], or [[Minor (law)|juvenile]]-related cases, arrest records are [[public records]].
Depending on local, state, or federal laws, (as well as agency policy) law enforcement agencies may be required to notify the public of certain types of criminal incidents. For example, the [[Clery Act]] requires [[Clery Act#Timely warnings|timely warnings]] to be published in the event of certain types of offences. Another example is California Assembly Bill No. 748 which "requires agencies to release any 'recording that relates to a critical incident,' or law enforcement shooting."<ref>{{cite web |author1=Julie Watts |title=What is a local law enforcement agency hiding? CBS sues for body camera footage to find out. |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/sacramento/news/cbs-news-sues-chp-to-release-roseville-park-shooting-video |website=CBS News |access-date=2 May 2024 |date=March 21, 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=AB-748 Peace officers: video and audio recordings: disclosure. |url=https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=201720180AB748 |website=leginfo.legislature.ca.gov |access-date=2 May 2024}}</ref>
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