A Few Misuses of Criminal Profiling

Criminal profiling is widely used to investigate and locate criminals and serial killers. Profiling a criminal and the process of has positive and negative impacts on society.

Criminal Profiling has been a long used tool by law enforcement. Unfortunately, it is a tool that doesn’t work in day to day law enforcement officer work. Criminal profiling is different than an individual profile that may used by investigators to find the perpetrators in a case, such as a murder, but the criminal profiling that is done by some officers is trying to fit an individual into a classification to prevent crimes.

One example of profiling which has recently been in the news is the profiling of individuals who looked as if they were of Middle-Eastern descent. If you have dark brown to black hair, dark brown eyes, and a dark complexion, you were automatically assumed to be of Middle-Eastern descent. This could mean you would be thought to be a person who would be more likely to perform a terrorist act.

Unfortunately, this profiling method does not work. There are many ethnicities that fall under this profile that are NOT of Middle-Eastern descent such as Italian, Spanish, South or Central American, Indian, or South Asian. Many were detained from airplanes and other public places, only to be released due to misinformation from the criminal profiling.

Another profile that was long used was that if a person was a young, black male, who lived in a poor neighborhood, than that person must be a gang member or have knowledge of gang crimes. Though there are some instances that are true when following this profile, a majority of the cases it are very wrong assumptions, wasting time, money, and resources using this misused profile process.

Criminal profiling does not have any benefits except to make one more cautious, which is something the law enforcement officer should be doing anyway. Each person that is dealt with by the officer has unique and uncommon history. Each situation is unique and uncommon and holds unique dangers and these aspects should be the motivators in creating a cautious yet effective police force. Good investigative technique does not require criminal profiling when used properly.