Question

What historically are the significant differences between the US and British police forces?

A. British police forces are created by the federal government
B. US police forces were created and reported to local and state governments
C. British police officers were accountable to the federal government
D. British police officers were forced to retire at the age of 40 while US police officers could work until they were 55

Answer 1

Answer: B. US police forces were created and reported to local and state governments

Step-by-step explanation:

The United States operates a Federal system of Governments which gives states the power to govern themselves to a high degree. This includes policing. In the states themselves, local authorities then have their own police agencies which keep the peace.

For this reason there are over 16,000 police agencies in the United States ranging from City police on one end to Federal agencies on the other but these are technically not police so the highest police rank is the State police.

This is unlike in the UK where policing is territorial (not Federal) with police officers having limited powers outside their assigned territories which include England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.