Criminology
Violent crimes are deemed unacceptable globally.Crimes such as murder,assault ,robbery and rape instilled fear in most people when they contemplate the possibility of becoming a victim of any of these heinous actions.South African criminal law defines murder as the unlawful and intentional killing of another person.The murder of a police official refers to causing the death of an official without a lawful excuse,and with the intent to kill the official.
The international killing of a police officer is ranked as one of the most serious crimes by the general public.Masuku (2000:21) states that police work is a high-risk career choice. Kempen (2005:19) states that the high incidence of attacks and the killing of police officials are cause for concern.The killing of police officials was already highlighted as a problem in the Quartly Report of the SAPS before the turn of the new millennium (CIMC,1998:42).Attacks on police officials have a detrimental effect on their morale and poses a stumbling block to their effectiveness. Geldenhuys (2007:11) states that "there are many police heroes who have paid the highest price to protect us and our property from criminals who walk our streets".
Police officials run the risk of being killed while on duty,most are killed when they are off-duty(Masuku,200:15).However,in recent times more police officials are being killed while on duty.Police officials are vulnerable when they respond to a crime and enter a dangerous situation. Sometimes they tend to rush recklessly into a situation without any thought for personal safety and the seriousness of the crime situation,example, a police official rushes to a scene and forgets to take the proper precautions,such as wearing a bullet-proof vest,thereby putting themselves at greater risk of being killed.Some of the main reasons why police officials are killed are because:perpetrators kill officers to avoid being arrested,sometimes perpetrators plan a direct attack on a specific police
The international killing of a police officer is ranked as one of the most serious crimes by the general public.Masuku (2000:21) states that police work is a high-risk career choice. Kempen (2005:19) states that the high incidence of attacks and the killing of police officials are cause for concern.The killing of police officials was already highlighted as a problem in the Quartly Report of the SAPS before the turn of the new millennium (CIMC,1998:42).Attacks on police officials have a detrimental effect on their morale and poses a stumbling block to their effectiveness. Geldenhuys (2007:11) states that "there are many police heroes who have paid the highest price to protect us and our property from criminals who walk our streets".
Police officials run the risk of being killed while on duty,most are killed when they are off-duty(Masuku,200:15).However,in recent times more police officials are being killed while on duty.Police officials are vulnerable when they respond to a crime and enter a dangerous situation. Sometimes they tend to rush recklessly into a situation without any thought for personal safety and the seriousness of the crime situation,example, a police official rushes to a scene and forgets to take the proper precautions,such as wearing a bullet-proof vest,thereby putting themselves at greater risk of being killed.Some of the main reasons why police officials are killed are because:perpetrators kill officers to avoid being arrested,sometimes perpetrators plan a direct attack on a specific police