According to the European Code of Police Ethics, what are the main goals of the police in a democratic society?

Keep public order and respect for the law, protect everyone's fundamental rights, prevent and fight crime, detect crime, and assist and serve the public.

The European Code of Police Ethics is a 2001 Council of Europe recommendation to its member states. It describes the police of a society governed by the rule of law (Vorherrschaft des Rechts: the state itself is bound by law). In such a society the police have five goals:

1. Public order: keep public tranquillity and respect for law and order.
2. Fundamental rights: protect and respect everyone's fundamental freedoms and rights, especially those in the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).
3. Crime prevention and combat.
4. Crime detection (Aufspüren): finding out what crimes happened and who committed them.
5. Service: assisting the population and providing services.

The list holds a tension. Goals 1, 3 and 4 push towards intervening, while goal 2 limits how far the police may go. Most dilemmas in police work arise where these goals collide (see the dilemma card).

Go deeper:

• HREA: European Code of Police Ethics, Rec(2001)10 — summary of the Code's sections with links to the full text in English, French and German.