Honoring the Badge: Spotting and Avoiding Ethical Pitfalls

Every day law enforcement personnel are presented with choices that can have long-term career consequences. Ethical behavior and decision-making are vital to the success and reputation of every law enforcement agency and the well-being of every officer. This presentation takes a deep dive into applied ethics and deals with hidden and ignored ethical challenges. The course, led by former Detective Captain James Dugan, whose highly decorated NJ police career was derailed by one bad judgment, is both sobering and inspiring.

This presentation addresses the following critical organizational needs:

• The major causes of unethical behavior within a law enforcement agency.

• The inherent career and officer wellness consequences of unethical behavior- long and short term.

• The liability of ethical compromise from the legal and public support point of view.

• The critical nature of ethical behavior as a “risk management” strategy.

• The Six Pillars of Character® - applying them within your agency.

• Command Staff strategies for championing ethical behavior and decision making.

About Jim Dugan, Lead Instructor:

Jim has a professional career path that is both accomplished and diverse. During his 13-year law enforcement career, Jim worked primarily in the areas of narcotic enforcement and police training. During that time, he received numerous awards and accommodations for his work in those areas and was a speaker at several state-wide law enforcement conferences throughout the northeast. He achieved the rank of Captain of Detectives at the age of 32 when he was promoted to Director of a New Jersey State Certified Police Training Academy.

Jim’s highly decorated police career ended abruptly in 1997 because of an ethical tragedy caused by “one bad decision” that took him outside the lines of what was right. In this course, Jim takes you through the painful journey, both professionally and personally, that resulted from his unethical conduct.

After a very successful 25-year career in the private sector, Jim has now committed his time to educating and supporting the policing community by providing expert insights and resources that promote professional development in the critical area of police ethics. Since its creation in 2019, the “Honoring the Badge” course has received very high reviews by the law enforcement community and has since been modified for the training of entire police agencies and command staffs. This training is a POST Certified ethics course in the State of California and is taught in both recruit and in-service training within the state.

Host or Publisher Drake University - Robert D. & Billie Ray Center