The limit between the ethics of conviction and the ethics of responsibility on the military police performance in urban centers

Abstract

The conduct of the Brazilian military police in the performance of duties has raised questions and discussions among different social segments. Intense debate about how the police should behave during routine operations to combat crime in the cities where there is more intense occurrence of crime gains ground with the growth of violence and police corruption, widespread in the media. In urban centers, places of highest demand of police action, because of the social relations dynamic that exist in these spaces, it is possible to notice more clearly the basis of the kind of action the police officers choose. This article presents a discussion on performance of military police role in urban centers, based on Weberian concepts of the ethics of conviction and the ethics of responsibility as a way of reflecting on borderline between the two ethics in police action facing the crime scenario.