Some observers say that police officers should be recruited from the communities where they work, so that they have local knowledge. Other people say that this is unnecessary, or even undesirable. Where do you stand on this debate? Is local knowledge essential in modern policing?

A common question I want to discuss is: “Would it be useful to recruit police officers from the communities in which they will work?” Like any topic of this nature, it has both positive and negative aspects. One example of this scenario is former drug dealers who now assist the police in combating drug trafficking. […]