Police

Police

The police are a constituted body of persons empowered by the state to enforce the law, protect property, and limit civil disorder. Their powers include the legitimized use of force. The term is most commonly associated with police services of a state that are authorized to exercise the police power of that state within a defined legal or territorial area of responsibility. Police forces are often defined as being separate from military or other organizations involved in the defense of the state against foreign aggressors; however, gendarmerie and military police are military units charged with civil policing.

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Famous quotes containing the word police:

    I’ve met a lot of murderers in my day, but Dr. Garth, whatever he is, is the first man I’ve ever met who was polite to me and still made the chills run up and down my back.
    —Robert D. Andrews. Nick Grindé. Police detective, Before I Hang, describing his meeting with Dr. Garth (1940)

    I guess a career in the police didn’t really prepare you for this, did it?
    Bob Hunt (b. 1951)

    Despite your best efforts, you could not invent a better police force for literature than criticism and the author’s own conscience.
    Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (1860–1904)