He represents the most insidious form of police misconduct: the quiet complicity of the well-meaning superior. He is the commander who looks the other way because "the union won't back it." He is the father who tells his son to be quiet to keep the peace. He is a "clean cop" who enables dirty systems.
Was Jackson West's dad a dirty cop? No. He was worse than a dirty cop. He was a respectable one. Because a dirty cop can be arrested and removed. A respectable enabler gets promoted to Commander, attends charity galas, and tells his son that the blood on the badge will wash out. And that, The Rookie argues, is the real crisis of modern policing. was jackson west's dad a dirty cop
Jackson’s entire arc is the tragedy of realizing that his hero is not a dragon-slayer, but a dragon-whisperer. Percy didn't set fires, but he also never called the fire department when he saw smoke. He represents the most insidious form of police
Here is a full analytical piece on the topic: The Shade of Grey: Deconstructing Percy West in The Rookie In the landscape of The Rookie , few characters carry the weight of moral complexity like Commander Percy West, the father of Officer Jackson West. On the surface, the show presents him as a stern, disciplined, and highly decorated Los Angeles Police Department commander who pushed his son toward Internal Affairs (IA). But beneath the veneer of the "good soldier" lies a troubling question that haunts Jackson’s arc: Was Percy West a dirty cop? He was a respectable one