The study distinguished between external and internal sources of alienation and between opposition to internally and to externally imposed control. Data were gathered by means of anonymous and confidential questionnaires distributed by the researcher or the shift supervisor during roll call to nearly all patrol officers during a 24-hour period. The questionnaires asked respondents to indicate whether they viewed a specific type of misconduct as deviant enough to violate the "code of silence" among police officers. The response rate was approximately 75 percent. The participants were mostly male (95 percent), all white, and averaged 34.25 years of age. Results indicated that continued police alienation from the public undermines the service ideal underlying a professional code of ethics. Findings suggested that improving trust between the police and the public rather than reducing police solidarity might lead to less tolerance of police misconduct by other officers but not to greater accountability in using expedient and questionable means to control crime. Tables and 100 reference notes