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Preferred term

federal policing  

Definition

  • The organization of law enforcement in the United States is based upon the concept of federalism, or the division of responsibilities between federal and state-based agencies, each with its own unique, clearly defined legal jurisdiction (the set of laws it is assigned the task of enforcing) and geographic jurisdiction (the physical boundaries of its authority). In practice, however, when there are criminal matters that involve multiple jurisdictional interests, the lines between federal agencies, or between federal and state agencies, can sometimes be blurred; this might occur, for example, when one federal agency temporary delegates certain authorities to another, or federal agents are deputized so that they are given the authority to enforce state laws. [Source: The Social History of Crime and Punishment in America: An Encylopedia; Federal Policing]

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https://concepts.sagepub.com/social-science/concept/federal_policing

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