A code of ethics, if it is to be effective, must acknowledge the realities of policing and the difficult nature of the policing role, especially with the wide use of discretion at all levels in policing. There are a range of mechanisms to enforce ethical standards and behavior on and off duty that include a variety of formal regulations as well as attempts to influence the police culture. In Victoria, there are a variety of disciplinary options to enforce the code of ethics and guide police behavior. Mechanisms to control police behavior also enforce ethics. These include codified and common law, codes of ethics, police manuals and other police formal and informal rules and regulations, training and educational courses, positive peer control, and positive hierarchical control by superiors. Other mechanisms of enforcement are the deputy ombudsman, who investigates complaints against police; government commission inquiries; and public and private pressure groups or forums of expression. There could be a strengthening of the teaching of police ethics within all police training and educational courses. The code of ethics and its meaning and effectiveness should be emphasized in promotional examinations and interviews. This could also be coupled with research by police on ethics and the propagation of this research. Most Australian police services have ethics codes and various mechanisms for their enforcement. A national police code of ethics is a feasible proposition. Codes of ethics are provided for the International Association of Chiefs of Police, the Vancouver Police Department (Canada), Victoria Police, Western Australia Police, and the Tasmania Police. 26 references