research on police abuse and corruption complains finds that

Preventing police misconduct

Ervin Staub's research on "active bystandership" is the foundation of a program helping New Orleans police avert misconduct by fellow police officers

By Amy Novotney

October 2017, Vol 48, No. 9

Print version: page 30

Forensics, Law, and Public Safety
Gun Violence and Crime

In 2005, police misconduct in New Orleans had reached an all-time high. In the weeks before and after Hurricane Katrina, several high-profile beatings and unjustified shootings by police led to intense federal scrutiny of the New Orleans Police Department (NOPD), including a 2010 U.S. Department of Justice investigation and a 2013 federal consent decree to overhaul policies and promote greater transparency and more civilian oversight of the police force.

In 2017, the NOPD aspires to serve as a model for how to reduce police misconduct. Rather than standing silently by—or joining in on a fellow officer's brutality—New Orleans police are being trained to step in when they see their colleagues about to overreact in heated situations, tell them to take a break and urge them not to do something they will regret.

Much of this reform can be attributed to the work of retired University of Massachusetts, Amherst, psychologist Ervin Staub, PhD, who has applied his life's work on what he calls "active bystandership" to develop an officer-training program that emphasizes peer intervention. Known as "Ethical Policing Is Courageous," or EPIC, the program has become "a key part of the reforms instituted to remake the NOPD," according to Michael S. Harrison, the NOPD's superintendent of police.

The city is already seeing some positive effects: Since the NOPD launched EPIC last year, the department has seen fewer complaints against police officers, Harrison says.

The goal of the training is to provide officers with tools and strategies to help them prevent overreactions or potential misconduct by fellow officers by using tactics, such as discreet passwords or codes that encourage a colleague to calm down, stop what they're doing or let them know that another officer is taking over. In nonemergency situations, EPIC teaches officers how to speak to co-workers privately about potential problems, or to ask another trusted colleague to approach a colleague who is engaging in troubling behavior.

"The program appeals to the deep sense of relationships these officers have with one another by asking them, ‘If you would step in and take a bullet for your partner, what is preventing you from intervening when they're about to do something that could get them fired?'" says Mary Howell, JD, a civil rights attorney in New Orleans who knew about Staub's work and introduced it and him to the NOPD.

Bystanding by tragedy

Dr. Ervin Staub holds a photo of his parents Rosza and Joszef Staub (left), and one of Maria Gogan (right) who helped his family in World War II.

Much of Staub's research has examined what leads witnesses to intervene in everyday emergencies and how passivity by people in some groups and societies is one contributor to an evolution toward genocide or other violence. His research began with expanding research by psychologists Bibb Latané, PhD, and John Darley, PhD, who found that as the number of bystanders increases, the likelihood that any one person will act decreases ( Journal of Personality & Social Psychology , Vol. 8, No. 4, 1968 ). Staub's research, however, found that this was not the case with young children. In a study with 232 children in kindergarten through sixth grade, researchers evaluated how participants—both alone and in pairs—responded when they heard sounds of a child's severe distress from an adjoining room ( Journal of Personality & Social Psychology , Vol. 14, No. 2, 1970 ).

"In kindergarten and first grade, the children support each other and are more likely to engage when they suspect a problem," Staub says. "But as they get older, they show a poker face, and if they don't see other people reacting, they will decide no action is necessary."

The study also showed that bystanders have great power. What the researchers said and how they responded to sounds from the other room greatly affected how participants reacted.

Staub has also found that individuals and groups change as a result of their own actions. This research was used to develop EPIC, as well as a training Staub has developed to reduce bullying in schools. In addition, interventions by his team to promote reconciliation in Rwanda led to more acceptance by Hutus and Tutsis of each other and engagement by survivors and former perpetrators.

Another aspect of the police training is helping officers overcome their conviction that loyalty to a fellow officer means accepting or joining in whatever he or she is doing, even if it is using unnecessary force.

"If, in the system, you're supposed to support your fellow officer all the time and you don't, you're often ostracized or outcast by your fellow officers and even superiors, so the cost of you intervening can be pretty substantial," Staub says. "That's one of the reasons why it's so important for the entire system, including superiors, to buy into the training, so that the culture really changes."

Today, nearly all of the NOPD force has been trained in EPIC, and the response from officers throughout the ranks has been overwhelmingly positive, Harrison says. Now, 28 law-enforcement agencies, including police departments in New York, Seattle, Las Vegas, Memphis and San Francisco, have requested program materials and inquired about the training.

Howell credits these effects to Staub and his commitment to "challenging the rest of us to think about how to be better people and how to not be silent," and putting his research to good use. "His work is a very good example of a successful transition of something that's fundamentally scientific and scholarly but has escaped the boundaries of the professional conversation and is making a huge impact on the larger world," she says.

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Race and police misconduct cases.

Andrea M. Headley Andrea M. Headley McCourt School of Public Policy, Georgetown University
and Kwan-Lamar Blount-Hill Kwan-Lamar Blount-Hill Borough of Manhattan Community College
https://doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/9780190264079.013.703
Published online: 26 May 2021

Racial disparities abound in policing, and police misconduct is no exception. Literature on race and police misconduct can be categorized into three sub-themes: race and (a) civilian complaints about police misconduct, (b) public perceptions about police misconduct, and (c) officer perceptions of police misconduct. Racial disparities are apparent in the resolution of civilian complaints, and in perceptions of the ubiquity and severity of police misconduct. People of color may not always view accountability systems as legitimate or feel comfortable using formal complaint processes as a means of resolve. Officers of color report being disadvantaged by internal compliant processes, observing more misconduct than do their White peers, and feeling less comfortable with informal codes of silence. All officers generally rate misconduct involving use of force against civilians of color as more serious when compared to similar incidents involving white individuals. Officers of color, in particular, are more likely to admit beliefs that police treat people differently based on race and income. As with police outcomes more generally, race-based disparities in measures of misconduct likely persist due to a combination of complex and interconnected individual-, institutional-, and societal-level factors. Further research is needed. Lack of comprehensive reporting mechanisms nationwide poses challenges for scholars studying misconduct. There needs to be a greater diversity of methods used to study misconduct, including qualitative methods, and more evaluative studies of the variety of policies proposed as solutions to misconduct. The contexts of misconduct research must also be expanded beyond the United States and the Global North/West to offer international and comparative insights.

police misconduct
civilian complaints
racial disparity

Introduction

Increased attention has been placed on policing in recent years due to the highly publicized deaths of people of color at the hands of police. While incidents that result in death are most often given intense media coverage and scrutiny, they have also sparked larger conversations around systemic racism, police use and abuse of discretion, and coercive authority broadly speaking. Public demonstrations, advocacy campaigns, and political platforms have all centered on policing, including the appropriate use of police services and governmental funding more generally. This current social, political, and economic climate requires a revisiting of the literature on race and police misconduct.

Racial and ethnic disparities abound in policing outcomes like arrest, stops and searches, and use of force. These disparities are also visible in public perceptions of and experiences with police misconduct. People of color report higher likelihoods of being subjected to unjustified stops and racial profiling (Engel, 2005 ; Lundman & Kaufman, 2003 ; Weitzer & Tuch, 2005 ) and are more likely to report being subject to disrespectful treatment, including verbal abuse, police prejudice, and physical abuse by police (Son & Rome, 2004 ). Not only do people of color disproportionately report greater personal negative experiences with police, but they also report increased likelihood of witnessing racial harassment and abuse of force perpetrated by police against others (Son & Rome, 2004 ). Personal and vicarious experiences with police misconduct have downstream implications for people of color’s levels of satisfaction with and attitudes toward the police (Avdija, 2010 ; Wu et al., 2009 ) and even have spillover effects into political and democratic engagement (Weaver et al., 2019 ).

This review proceeds by first providing a general overview of race and policing (primarily in the United States) followed by an overview of the broader police misconduct literature, where attention is devoted to defining and explaining misconduct. Next follows a review of the empirical research on the intersection of race and police misconduct. This is broken down into three subsections, focusing on race and (a) police misconduct as measured by complaints, (b) public perceptions about police misconduct, and (c) officer perceptions of police misconduct. Subsequent attention is given to unpacking the theoretical reasons for the persistence of racial disparities in policing. Finally, the review discusses solutions recommended to address and prevent racialized outcomes in police misconduct and concludes with directions for future research.

Race and Policing in the United States

It is now widely accepted among policing scholars that the history of law enforcement is dualistic and morally complicated. The first professionalized police department was established in Boston, Massachusetts, an improvement over the colonial-era bands of volunteers that had previously patrolled municipalities to ensure public order (Grant & Terry, 2017 ; Lundman, 1980 ). However, law enforcement also traces its history back to the “slave patrols” of the antebellum American South (Reichel, 1992 ). These were vigilante groups of armed White men organized to detect and capture slaves attempting to escape from their masters’ plantations and to mete out justice to Black individuals caught out-of-place or out-of-order. These two origin stories converge and entangle police history in a series of conflicting dualisms:

On the one hand, law enforcement agents have protected civil rights protesters, enforced desegregation orders, and protected Black students as they integrated public schools. On the other hand, law enforcement officers also helped enforce the Fugitive Slave Act prior to the Civil War, facilitated the convict leasing program during Reconstruction, enforced the Black codes and Jim Crow laws during the first half of the twentieth century , and quelled mass protests for racial justice from the 1960s up through the present. (Drakulich et al., 2020 , pp. 375–376)

Often, discussions concerning race and policing center on the collective experience of Black people, but police have tense histories with Native American, Latinx, and East Asian communities (Equal Justice Initiative, 2015 ; Lundman, 1974 ; Sun & Wu, 2018 ), as well as Muslim communities (Waxman, 2009 ), who are often racialized and conflated with Arab or Black. These histories have continued salience even today (e.g., Jones-Brown et al., 2020 ; Schroedel & Chin, 2020 ), evinced by still gaping racial disparities (Headley, 2020 ).

Soss and Weaver ( 2017 ) described American government as having two “faces.” One represents the liberal democratic ideal of a robust social contract wherein the public’s civic duty is matched by a caring and responsive state apparatus. The second “face” is the coercive and, according to some, oppressive and suppressive carceral state, with its criminal justice system and near monopoly over authorized use of force. Police officers have been agents of both but are experienced in poor communities of color (i.e., “race-class subjugated communities”; Soss & Weaver, 2017 , p. 567) overwhelming as representatives of the latter. By some estimates, Black people are nearly three times more likely to be detained by police on suspicion of a crime, and more than five times as likely to be stopped (Epp et al., 2017 ). Black people are arrested at more than double the rate of Whites (Hartney & Vuong, 2009 ). Residents of neighborhoods with higher concentrations of low socioeconomic status minorities are more heavily policed, with increased chances of being stopped and sanctioned, supplying a disproportionate number of residents for incarceration (Brunson & Weitzer, 2009 ; Kurgan & Cadora, 2005 ). Black and Latinx civilians are more likely to experience use of force during encounters with police, to do so more frequently, as well as to experience higher severity in the force applied (Bolger, 2015 ; Edwards et al., 2018 ; Fryer, 2019 ; Gau et al., 2010 ; Goff et al., 2016 ; Ross, 2015 ; Schimmack & Carlsson, 2020 ). Further, people of color often represent a disproportionate share of those killed by police, particularly those who are unarmed when killed (Edwards et al., 2019 ; Jones-Brown & Blount-Hill, 2020 ; Price & Payton, 2017 ). These findings get more complex when examining the interactive effects of officer and civilian race, where some research suggests that heightened or more severe force is used when there is racial or ethnic incongruence in use of force encounters (i.e., particularly in encounters with White officers and Black civilians; see Headley & Wright, 2020 ; Paoline et al., 2018 ; Wright & Headley, 2020 ). Still, intersectional identities are more negatively impacted by having a racial minority status, as in the case of gender-specific and sexual police misconduct against Black women (Ritchie & Jones-Brown, 2017 ) or against those faced with the double stigma of racial and sexual minority status (e.g., English et al., 2020 ).

Racial disparities are “numerical differences in outcomes between racial groups” (Khan & Martin, 2016 , p. 84). It is difficult to pinpoint the exact cause of disparities in criminal justice outcomes. At least three common hypotheses have been advanced: (a) certain races have disproportionate numbers of individuals engaging in crime, attracting and deserving police attention (an “individual/group-as-cause” thesis); (b) current socio-structural societal arrangements concentrate and enhance (e.g., through discrimination and hypersegregation) criminogenic factors (e.g., poverty, unemployment) within communities of color, decreasing opportunities for success and increasing crime (“society-as-cause”); and (c) the justice system itself is designed specifically to unfairly prosecute and persecute people of color (“system-as-cause”). While many of the early explanations placing individual blame on people of color have been discredited (e.g., atavism), references to minority cultures of violence are emblematic of these arguments (Hinton, 2016 ; for summary, see Blount-Hill, 2019 ). Researchers now more often explain crime committed by people of color by pointing to inequities in the larger society (e.g., the theory of African American offending of Unnever & Gabbidon, 2011 ). Building on the legacy of Massey and Denton’s demographic work ( 1988 , 1989 ; Massey & Tannen, 2015 ) on “hypersegregation”—highly disparate levels of population isolation and concentration—policing scholars have shown how racial groups’ structural exclusion from the benefits of society encourage contentiousness with police (e.g., Bell, 2017 ; Sampson & Bartusch, 1998 ). Moreover, scholars have increasingly begun disconnecting crime from police contact altogether in favor of explicit and/or implicit racial bias by police organizations as the predominant cause of disparity (see Tregle et al., 2019 for further discussion). Alexander’s The New Jim Crow ( 2010 ) details this phenomenon, while Hinton ( 2016 ) locates its historical roots at the highest levels of federal justice policy (see also St. John, V. J., 2019 ).

Defining and Understanding Police Misconduct

Whatever its roots, disproportionate contact with police leads to disproportionate opportunities for illegal or unethical treatment at the hands of police officers. Police misconduct includes a range of activities and behaviors by police violating ethical or legal rules, policies, and/or procedures whether internal or external to the organization, which are often “abusive, discriminatory, dishonest, fraudulent and/or coercive” (Headley et al., 2017 , p. 44). It is important to note that police misconduct has not been comprehensively conceptualized or operationalized consistently across police departments, which poses inherent challenges to adequately capturing data on the topic. As such, police misconduct types may vary, and activities include, but are not limited to, unjustifiable or unlawful uses of force, especially fatal shootings (e.g., Jones-Brown & Blount-Hill, 2020 ); police corruption (e.g., Ivković, 2009 ; Roebuck & Barker, 1974 ; Stinson et al., 2013 ); sexual misconduct (Cottler et al., 2014 ; Stinson et al., 2015 ); as well as officer participation in hate crimes against sexual minorities, the gender variant, and other marginalized groups (Moton et al., 2020 ; Wolff & Cokely, 2007 ). All misconduct is not necessarily illegal. “Integrity violations” include such actions as accepting questionable secondary employment, abuse of power, misuse of police resources, and, of course, preference or bias on the basis of race (Lasthuizen et al., 2011 ).

Police misconduct has often been conceived as an individual-level phenomenon—the “bad apple” problem. In a review of New York City Police Department (NYPD) records over 2 decades, Kane and White ( 2009 ) found misconduct associated with young officers without college education, and with criminal records and poor employment history, along with officers who were not promoted, who worked in more hectic patrol assignments, and those with prior histories of complaints (on this latter point, see also Harris & Worden, 2014 ). Their study is in line with several that preceded them (e.g., Malouff & Schutte, 1986 ). A countervailing argument is that police organizations produce environments that cultivate misconduct. According to Punch ( 2000 ), this is now the “new realism” and a conclusion on which most recent research converges. Lee et al. ( 2013 ) moved beyond individual officers to find that supervisors and overall departmental culture are highly influential on officers’ attitudes toward corruption. In a study analyzing data from nearly 500 police departments, Eitle et al. ( 2014 ) found that organization size, a full-time internal affairs unit, and department training is negatively associated with police misconduct. These and other studies imply that corruption may be a cultural and organizational phenomenon.

Nevertheless, siting misconduct’s origin at the organizational level invites further critique. Such arguments, along with blaming individual officers, may be seen as a mere smokescreen to cover larger sociocultural issues that would not require targeted sanctions but, instead, more radical professional and systemic reform (Bains, 2018 ). The analysis of discretionary stops by Epp et al. ( 2017 ) presents evidence of racial bias that permeates across organizations. Their findings suggest the influence of widespread professional norms shared by police officers across locales that violate principles of neutrality and objective enforcement. Similar dynamics can also encourage other forms of misconduct. Chappell and Piquero ( 2004 ) showed that officer norms were passed down not necessarily through organizational mandate but through social learning from peer officer. Ivković et al. ( 2018 ) found officers’ perception of a norm against reporting to be “the key factor” influencing willingness to report fellow officers’ misconduct—evidence of a “blue wall of silence,” likened to the Mafia code of omertá. That individual officer behavior can be influenced by social structures is found in international comparative literature as well. At a nation level, police corruption is negatively correlated with male school life expectancy (the number of years a male is likely to spend in school), the level of female involvement in the labor force, and economic development, while it is positively correlated with the size of the informal labor force (Gutierrez-Garcia & Rodríguez, 2016 ).

Race and Police Misconduct

Research specifically on race and police misconduct can be organized into three categories highlighting racial differences with regard to:

misconduct as measured by civilian complaints and/or internal complaint processes;

public perceptions toward and/or attitudes about police misconduct; and

police officer attitudes and/or perceptions of misconduct.

Race and Misconduct Complaints and Complaint Processes

By far the most used indicator of police misconduct in the literature is civilian complaints. Complaints not only get at public perceptions of experienced misconduct (Lersch, 1998 ) but also serve as a proxy for bureaucratic integrity and accountability (Hong, 2017 ). Generally, this literature examines either the impacts on misconduct of a civilian’s race or the racial makeup of the public (Eitle et al., 2014 ; Hickman & Piquero, 2009 ; Lersch, 1998 ) independent of racial identification among officers (Harris, 2010 , 2014 ; Harris & Worden, 2014 ; Hong, 2017 ; Kane & White, 2009 ; Rojek & Decker, 2009 ; Smith et al., 2015 ; Wolfe & Piquero, 2011 ), though some studies do examine implications for the race of both civilians and officers (Headley et al., 2017 ; Terrill & Ingram, 2016 ).

In examining the impact of complainant race on complaint outcomes, complainants of color fare worse once they lodge a formal complaint with a police department (Ajilore & Shirey, 2017 ). Specifically, Terrill and Ingram ( 2016 ) found that Black, Latinx, and other non-White civilians file more improper force complaints, yet, Black complainants have a lower likelihood of having their allegation sustained when compared to White complainants. Similarly, Headley et al. ( 2017 ) found that Black and Latinx complainants are less likely to have allegations “sustained” as compared to “not sustained,” “unfounded,” or “exoneration.” Lersch ( 1998 ) found that complaints involving encounters with proactive contacts, multiple officers on scene, officers with more years of service, and excessive force allegations are more often filed by civilians of color than Whites (yet, force complaints as compared to other types of complaints are less likely to be substantiated). While race may matter at the individual level, at the community level neither Eitle et al. ( 2014 ) nor Hickman and Piquero ( 2009 ) found statistical support for the impact of minority group threat and minority representation, respectively, on civilian complaints across U.S. police departments.

Next, turning to the race of the officer, the current research is mixed regarding whether racial or ethnic demographics correlate with the frequency of complaints that officers receive. Whereas scholarship documents that Black officers are less likely to have multiple complaints filed against them compared to their White peers (Wolfe & Piquero, 2011 ), other research suggests that Black officers receive complaints earlier in their career and more frequently when compared to White officers (Harris, 2014 ; Harris & Worden, 2014 ). Specifically, in a longitudinal analysis, Harris ( 2010 ) found that Black officers are significantly more likely to be in a higher complaint rate group, which had earlier onset, higher frequency, and longer duration of problematic behaviors. Still, officer race is not always a significant correlate of receiving a misconduct complaint, particularly complaints about police excessive use of force (Brandl et al., 2001 ; McElvain & Kposowa, 2004 ). While the aforementioned studies examine complaint outcomes within departments, rather than across departments, Hong ( 2017 ) found that police departments in the United Kingdom that have greater ethnic minority representation have less police misconduct overall (as indicated by a department’s total number of substantiated civilian complaints)—this finding is particularly salient when looking at complaints alleged by Black individuals.

Despite the mixed evidence on the likelihood or frequency of complaints, the research is fairly clear that complaints against Black officers are more likely to be sustained or substantiated (Harris, 2014 ; Headley et al., 2017 ; Terrill & Ingram, 2016 ). In examining career-ending misconduct, Kane and White ( 2009 ) found that Black and Latinx officers are more likely to be separated from the police department for serious or criminal misconduct as well as drugs. Officers of color also receive more internally generated complaints as compared to White officers, which usually result in a sustained outcome (Rojek & Decker, 2009 ). Rojek and Decker ( 2009 ) did not find differences in the severity of disciplinary actions following a sustained complaint outcome—so White officers and officers of color receive similar punishment outcomes. However, they do note that internally generated complaints often lead to harsher punishment irrespective of officer race, suggesting that disparity in the origin of complaints leads to some disparity in complaint outcomes. Further, Smith et al. ( 2015 ) examined how ethnic minority police officers in England and Wales perceive police misconduct investigation processes. They conclude that ethnic minority officers are more likely to experience being subject to formal proceedings whereas informal measures are used with White officers when investigating internal misconduct allegations. This supports prior research conducted in the United States that reveals that Black officers experience a two-tiered internal accountability and disciplinary system that favors White officers at the expense of Black officers (Bolton, 2003 ).

Race and Public Perceptions of Police Misconduct

Another measure of police misconduct relies on perceptions of the public, who are likely to be most impacted by misconduct. The finding that White civilians have more favorable perceptions of and experiences with police has long been confirmed (Dowler & Zawilski, 2007 ; Sethuraju et al., 2019 ; Weitzer, 1999 ). Black residents perceive that White individuals are treated preferentially by the police (Brunson, 2007 ; Dowler & Zawilski, 2007 ), and people of color are also more likely to judge police misconduct incidents as more serious (Seron et al., 2004 ).

In an analysis of survey data from Black, Latinx, and White residents, Weitzer and Tuch ( 2004 ) found that there are significant racial differences in perception of police misconduct, with White respondents having the lowest likelihood of believing that police engage in misconduct, then Latinx, and then Black individuals, who have the highest likelihood of agreement. They also found that Black and Latinx respondents report more experiences with police misconduct and abuse overall. Seron et al. ( 2004 , 2006 ) used a vignette study to examine New York residents’ perceptions of seriousness on a variety of police misconduct incidents (e.g., unlawful or misuses of force, abuse of authority, discourteous or offensive verbal language). They found that knowing the race of a victim does not make a difference for the respondent’s rating of the degree of seriousness of police misconduct. However, the racial demographics of the respondent do make a difference in how they judge incidents: Black raters are more likely to judge the police misconduct as more serious when compared to White respondents (Seron et al., 2004 ). Apart from solely looking at Black and White differences, Sethuraju et al. ( 2019 ) compared university student perceptions of the frequency of police misconduct, as measured by unjustified stops, verbal abuse, and excessive physical force. Their results suggest that Black students, as compared to White and Asian students, believe there is more police misconduct in general and more in their respective neighborhoods. Native American students also believe there is more police misconduct compared to White students. In a qualitative analysis of young Black men’s experiences with the police, Brunson ( 2007 ) found that these men commonly report police harassment and mistreatment, aggressive or violent police behavior, and police misconduct (see also Brunson & Miller, 2006 ; Gau & Brunson, 2010 ). Brunson and colleagues concluded that negative contacts with the police accumulate over time, reduce confidence in processes of accountability, and, as such, are often not reported through formal complaint systems.

Other demographic and socioeconomic nuances may interact with race and shape perceptions about police misconduct. Using a mixed-methods approach to examine the impact of race and class on perceptions of police misconduct, Weitzer ( 1999 ) found that neighborhood class position shapes attitudes about police misconduct within race (e.g., comparing lower-class Black residents to middle-class Black residents), exhibiting an inverse relationship. This suggests that “police abuse of citizens is found disproportionately in groups with the least capacity to offer resistance” (Weitzer, 1999 , p. 843). Racial differences in perceptions are also complicated by other characteristics apart from class or socioeconomic status, including, but not limited to, education, gender, age, and personal and vicarious experiences with the police (Weitzer & Tuch, 2004 ).

A handful of studies include examinations of the impacts of media consumption as well as high-profile misconduct incidents on police misconduct perceptions and attitudes (Dowler & Zawilski, 2007 ; Graziano et al., 2010 ; Kaminski & Jefferis, 1998 ; Sethuraju et al., 2019 ; Weitzer, 2002 ; Weitzer & Tuch, 2004 ). Dowler and Zawilski ( 2007 ) found that the frequency of viewing network news has a stronger effect on non-White respondents’ perception of police misconduct as compared to White respondents. Similarly, Black and Latinx civilians who have frequent exposure to media reports about police abuse also believe that police misconduct happens more regularly (Weitzer & Tuch, 2004 ). That said, the type of media exposure matters, and Dowler and Zawilski ( 2007 ) noted that non-White respondents who frequently watch network news have stronger beliefs about racial discrimination by police, yet this relationship is reversed for non-White respondents who watch police reality programs.

Immediately following high-profile incidents of perceived misconduct (of scandals and excessive force) in New York City and Los Angeles, public opinion about and attitudes toward policing declined across White, Black, and Latinx residents, with the magnitude of attitudinal change being stronger for Black Americans (Weitzer, 2002 ), confirming prior research by Kaminski and Jefferis ( 1998 ). Alternatively, using experimental methods, Graziano et al. ( 2010 ) found that Black residents and other residents of color in Chicago hold stronger beliefs about how police use race as a decision-making cue, but that, over time and following a key racial profiling incident, all respondents’ beliefs about the use of racial profiling decreased. The authors’ attribute this decline to the influence of subsequent media construction and portrayal of the incident.

Race, Police Officer Perceptions, and Police Misconduct

Comparatively fewer studies assess racial differences in police officers’ perceptions and attitudes of misconduct. These studies, though limited, either focus on the race of the suspect or victim in an incident (Son et al., 1998 ) or the officer’s racial identity (Gau & Paoline, 2020 ; Wolfe & Piquero, 2011 ) and the respective impacts on officer perceptions. Son et al. ( 1998 ) found that officer behavior is usually the strongest predictor of police officers’ perceptions of the seriousness of a misconduct incident irrespective of suspect race. For instance, a police officer using excessive force is perceived as serious misconduct especially if the suspect died, was seriously injured or if the suspect was not resisting. However, when an officer uses physical harm to coerce a suspect with no prior record, officers rate this as more serious when the incident involves a Black suspect as compared to a White suspect. The authors concluded that there is no evidence of racial bias against Black suspects in police perceptions of the seriousness of misconduct. Regarding differences based on officer race, Gau and Paoline ( 2020 ) assessed officer perceptions of equitable treatment and procedural justice across racial groups in a midsized police department in Florida. They found that Black police officers (as compared to their peer officers) are more likely to share beliefs that police are biased against people of color or people with low-income, suggesting an admission of unequal treatment by race and socioeconomic status. Wolfe and Piquero ( 2011 ) assessed correlations between perceptions of organizational justice, the code of silence, and noble-cause corruption with police misconduct outcomes in Philadelphia. They found that officers who identify with a racial or ethnic minority group are less likely to agree with protecting their peers during misconduct allegations, excusing their peers for minor legal violations, and refusing to take action against misconduct by peers. Further, Son and Rome ( 2004 ) found that officers of color are more likely to report observing other officers use excessive force and engage in racial harassment, particularly when in neighborhoods or areas with heightened levels of perceived criminal activity.

Theoretical Explanations for the Persistence of Racial Disparities in Policing

Why does race persist as such a permanent and indelible factor in American policing? Policing is one in a network of institutions designed to uphold the status quo societal structure. Importantly, law enforcement has traditionally been tasked with upholding the ethics and morality of “the system,” as enshrined in its laws, a first and foremost defense against those who challenge existing norms. Claims to equality by marginalized groups (such as people of color) necessarily challenge an existing system of inequality which, especially when attended by civil upheaval, presents the exact kind of challenge police may feel duty-bound to quell. Moton et al. argue that, “as moral agents and defenders of what is ‘right’, officers may be apprehensive to relent to challenges to absolutist morality” and traditional views of propriety ( 2020 , p. 246). Individuals who feel allegiance to a social system—whether or not they are members of a group benefited by it—will rationalize justifications for its continuance, including “fair” reasons why racial minorities remain disparately disadvantaged (Uhlmann et al., 2010 ). The hypersegregation noted in Massey and Denton’s work ( 1988 , 1989 ) is both cause and consequence of continued resistance to integration by White people, as isolation spurs concentrated disadvantage, which spurs crime, which justifies isolation, and on and on in circular fashion. This social psychological process is called system justification, “the tendency of people to accept and defend the legitimacy of the status quo social order” (Blount-Hill, 2020 , p. 6). It often leads to Bayesian racism, “the belief that it is rational to discriminate against individuals based on stereotypes about their racial group” (Uhlmann et al., 2010 , p. 10; also called rational racism).

Khan and Martin ( 2016 ) provide a thorough review of the social psychological contributors to police bias leading to racial disparities in police treatment. Much recent attention has been given to the operation of implicit bias, harmful and discriminatory attitudes that are “held beneath conscious awareness, are more automatic in nature, and do not require intention or effort” (Khan & Martin, 2016 , p. 91). According to the theory of aversive racism, these biases can coexist with explicit beliefs about racial equality. Therefore, police officers may not only be outwardly non-racist, but may authentically believe themselves to be non-racist, while still subconsciously operating based on racist, stereotypical assumptions about the individuals they encounter. This is important, as similar cultural mechanisms shaping White officers’ perceptions of racial minorities might also shape minority officers’ perceptions of other groups and their own. As Jones-Brown and Blount-Hill ( 2020 ) warn, “Black minds are not immune to racially-biased enculturation merely because they reside in Black bodies” (p. 298). Officers may also perceive minorities—and especially Black men—as specifically dangerous based on stereotypes connecting Blackness to danger that stem from early American history and are propagated consistently throughout the culture in explicit and implicit ways (Owusu-Bempah, 2017 ).

Social psychological theories, while accounting for the individual in interaction with a social milieu, are nonetheless designed to explain internal thought processes at the level of individual persons. The work of Eterno et al. ( 2017 ) shows that organizations can place separate pressures on individual officers to engage in actions such as dubious investigatory stops. According to their work, the NYPD’s implementation of the CompStat (“compare statistics”) performance management system dramatically increased the sense of “high pressure” to stop-question-and-frisk on upper management by more than double, with similar effects on arrest and summons activity. Epp et al. ( 2017 ) used neo-institutional theory to explain how norms of misconduct reach beyond individual organizations and pervade an entire profession. According to this frame, “common institutionalized practices emerge from the sharing of ideas through professional networks rather than from official mandates” (Epp et al., 2017 , p. 171). In writing of how racially discriminatory practices come to pervade not only professions but the societal systems (e.g., the criminal justice system), Blount-Hill ( 2019 ) explains:

Theories of rational racism assert that racist views often rely on seemingly neutral overgeneralizations and that, when these individuals are concentrated in positions of power, biases become embedded in the decision-making of otherwise neutral governing systems to create separate and unequal outcomes. Marked divergence of one group’s experience versus another is such that the one system might as well be two—a single system, separate-experience scheme referred to as petit apartheid. (p. 185)

Within this two-in-one system, Black and Latinx individuals are greatly overrepresented in the criminal justice system writ large, a phenomenon termed disproportionate minority contact (St. John, 2019 ). A minority threat thesis argues that disproportionate policing of minorities increases as the proportional population of minorities increases, “a means to maintain hegemonic dominance in society or retain the status quo of majority power (i.e., White supremacy). Disproportionate minority contact is the intended result and a means to keep people of color from leveraging their population in a way that may disrupt the racial and ethnic hierarchy” (St. John, 2019 , pp. 45–46). Though there is mixed support for the thesis across studies, several have shown predictive power in a minority threat hypothesis—in other words, that sense of societal threat can cause a suppressive reaction from criminal justice systems, resulting in an exponential increase in minority individuals’ police contact and attendant rises in police misconduct (Holmes, 2000 ; Kane, 2002 ; but cf. Eitle et al., 2014 ). In a recent example, Duxbury ( 2020 ) used event-centered statistical analyses of data from 79 national surveys, covering from 1975 to 2012 , to demonstrate a correlation between minority group size, inter alia, white punitiveness, and sentencing policy changes. Notably, the sense of minority threat may be an individual experience but is exemplary of how biases, shared among a set of system actors, can coagulate into system-wide practices that then become self-sustaining with the enculturation of new entrants into the system hierarchy.

Reactive Measures and Preventive Solutions

Resulting from a complex web of societal institutions, professional norms, departmental cultures, and individual dispositions, both inherent and forged by police experience, significant and widespread change in police behavior to stifle misconduct is indeed daunting. However, several proposed solutions show promise.

By far, two of the most commonly and strongly advocated policy proposals for curbing misconduct are the use of body-worn cameras and the institution of civilian oversight boards. Body-worn cameras “can capture, from an officer’s point of view, video and audio recordings of activities, including traffic stops, arrests, searches, interrogations, and critical incidents such as officer-involved shootings” (Miller & Tolliver, 2014 , p. 1). The research on the efficacy of body-worn cameras is mixed (Lum et al., 2019 ). Some studies find generally positive findings (Ariel et al., 2015 ; Jennings et al., 2014 ; White et al., 2018 ), such as reductions in use of force (Farrar, 2014 ) and civilian complaints (Farrar, 2013 ; Goodall, 2007 ; Mesa Police Department, 2013 ), as well as in assaults on officers (ODS Consulting, 2011 ). Others find no support or modest support at best (Ariel, 2017 ; Edmonton Police Service, 2015 ; Headley et al., 2017 ). Reminiscent of the findings of Eterno et al. ( 2017 ) on the implementation of CompStat, body-worn cameras may also increase enforcement activity among officers, possibly by increasing their felt pressure to carry out departmental goals (Headley et al., 2017 ; Morrow et al., 2016 ). Further, there are no published studies to date examining the impact of body-worn cameras on racial disparities.

Civilian oversight mechanisms, most often in the form of civilian review boards, were advanced during the civil rights era as a direct recommendation for dealing with police abuses of discretion (Finn, 2001 ; Walker, 2006 ). While review boards vary in scope and magnitude, these external oversight bodies are often composed of community members tasked with reviewing or investigating civilian complaints and excessive use of force incidents. Some research shows no effect for civilian review boards on civilian complaints (Hickman & Piquero, 2009 ; Smith & Holmes, 2014 ) or assaults (Willits, 2014 ). However, other research suggests that the presence of these review boards indeed reduces racial disparities in discretionary disorderly conduct arrests and police homicides of civilians (Ali & Pirog, 2019 ) and correlates with fewer deadly force incidents (Willits & Nowacki, 2014 ). With both types of accountability mechanisms—body-worn cameras and civilian oversight boards—implementation is paramount. Lack of consistency in how such interventions are governed, used, implemented, and ultimately enforced can lead to inefficiency and ineffectiveness, quelling the original goals of ensuring accountability, curbing misconduct, and reducing racial disparities (Headley, 2020 ).

Other long-standing recommendations focus on training, particularly around cultural competence (the ability to interact respectfully with individuals across cultures), implicit bias, and the structural causes of minority disadvantage (e.g., Epp et al., 2017 ; Khan & Martin, 2016 ). Training can “serve as a way to equip officers with the tools, strategies, and techniques needed to effectively fulfill their job responsibilities” and “as a means to socialize police, teach preferred behaviors, and discourage unwanted behaviors” (Headley, 2020 , p. 90). Smith ( 2004 ) and Eitle et al. ( 2014 ) found that the number of in-service trainings hours is a statistically significant correlate of lower homicides by police and police misconduct, respectively. However, others found positive correlations between in-service training and police use of force (Lee et al., 2010 ). There are limited, if any at all, empirical studies published that evaluate the efficacy of implicit bias and cultural sensitivity trainings on police misconduct specifically, particularly racial disparities in police outcomes.

Departments and the entire police profession must reconsider metrics for measuring police performance (Eterno et al., 2017 ). The use of number of arrests or citations may encourage officers to seek out illegality, often needing to resort to questionable tactics that are concentrated on those least empowered to protect themselves and their communities. Khan and Martin ( 2016 ) pointed to the proposed End Racial Profiling Act, which, among other things, would prohibit the “targeting an individual based on race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, gender, gender identity, or sexual orientation without other reliable information that links that person to a crime” (p. 109). It also establishes a national database for incidents of police misconduct, a recommendation with strong scholar support (e.g., Epp et al., 2017 ). Glaser ( 2015 ) noted the effectiveness in changing administrative policy around targeted practices and procedures that lead to racially disparate outcomes. His book, Suspect Race , recounts the example of the California Highway Patrol prohibiting the use of consent searches due to its disproportionate impact on people of color during drug interdictions and the positive implications thereof.

Others urge departments to put greater effort into discovering officers at risk for misconduct in the candidate hiring process (Arrigo & Claussen, 2003 ; Kane & White, 2009 ), and on interventions external to the department, such as a stronger commitment to prosecute police misconduct (Jones-Brown & Blount-Hill, 2020 ) and removing legal shields from civil suits against officers (Jones-Brown et al., 2020 ). Regardless of the mechanisms put forth to address racial disparities and police misconduct, no entirely novel proposal for police reform has been offered for decades; rather, similar proposals have been put forth time and time again (e.g., for a review of national police reform commissions see Headley & Wright, 2019 ). This fact begs the question whether the true problem is really ignorance of what to do or instead being fixed on not doing it (or not doing it effectively and fully resourced) (see also Weitzer, 2015 ).

Future Research Directions

As a whole, the empirical literature on police misconduct and race has displayed the following key points: First, people of color experience disparities with their complaint resolution outcomes, often having a lower likelihood of having their complaint sustained. Second, officers of color commonly report feeling disadvantaged by the internal compliant investigatory processes. Third, young men of color often report more aggressive, abusive and hostile experiences with the police, which can reduce their trust in systems of accountability and thus may not be captured by formal complaints. Fourth, people of color perceive police misconduct as more serious and occurring more frequently than do their White counterparts. These disparities can be exacerbated by sociodemographic nuances (such as class) as well as experiential factors (such as media exposure and high-profile incidents). Fifth, officers may perceive officer misconduct involving Black victims as more serious than those incidents with White victims. Sixth, racial differences exist among officers where officers of color report stronger beliefs that police treat people unequally based on race and class. Lastly, officers of color are less likely to identify with code of silence beliefs and more likely to report observing their peers engage in misconduct.

Various reasons have been put forth to understand the persistence and prevalence of racial disparities; however, it is likely a combination of complex and interconnected individual-, institutional-, and societal-level factors. While there is ample research explaining the presence of disparities in certain key misconduct outcomes, there is need for further research that addresses the apparent gaps in the literature. First, the lack of comprehensive reporting mechanisms nationwide poses challenges for scholars studying the phenomena. Future research and public initiatives should put forth ways to measure and analyze the various types of police misconduct that occur in police departments and to incorporate key demographic information including, but not limited to, the race and ethnicity of officers and civilians. Thus far, scholars who assess race in their analyses of police misconduct often do so using quantitative methods, while only a few scholars engage in qualitative studies. However, qualitative research can offer important contextualized and nuanced insights that might otherwise be masked by purely quantitative studies (for instance, see Bolton, 2003 ; Brunson, 2007 ; Brunson & Miller, 2006 ; Gau & Brunson, 2010 ; Smith et al., 2015 ; Weitzer, 1999 ). Further, most of the research here fails to include evaluations of policies, practices, programs, or other interventions that prevent racial disparities in police misconduct perceptions or outcomes (with the exception of Ali & Pirog, 2019 ). Understanding the short- and long-term efficacy of proposed solutions is essential. Lastly, the majority of research has been conducted within the United States (for exceptions see Hong, 2017 and Smith et al., 2015 ); thus, future studies should explore cross-country and cross-cultural experiences with regard to race and police misconduct. Law enforcement officers are entrusted with power both awesome in scope and grave in its consequence. Perhaps the most crucial role researchers can have in the criminal justice system is to assist in regulating the use of that power for the public good.

Fighting Police Abuse: A Community Action Manual

1. SOME OPERATING ASSUMPTIONS

2. GETTING STARTED — IDENTIFY THE PROBLEM

3. GATHER THE FACTS Forget the Official Data What You Really Need to Know, And Why Where To Get The Information, And How

4. CONTROLLING THE POLICE — COMMUNITY GOALS A Civilian Review Board Control of Police Shootings Reduce Police Brutality End Police Spying Oversight of Police Policy Improved Training Equal Employment Opportunity Certification and Licensing of Police Officers Accreditation of Your Police Department

5. ORGANIZING STRATEGIES Build Coalitions Monitor the Police Use Open Records Laws Educate the Public Use the Political Process to Win Reforms Lobby For State Legislation

A FINAL WORD

RESOURCES Bibliography Organizations ACLU Affiliates

CREDITS & ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

In the early hours of March 3, 1991, a police chase in Los Angeles ended in an incident that would become synonymous with police brutality: the beating of a young man named Rodney King by members of the Los Angeles Police Department. An amateur video, televised nationwide, showed King lying on the ground while three officers kicked him and struck him repeatedly with their nightsticks. No one who viewed that beating will ever forget its viciousness.

The Rodney King incident projected the brutal reality of police abuse into living rooms across the nation, and for a while, the problem was front page news. Political leaders condemned police use of excessive force and appointed special commissions to investigate incidents of brutality. The media covered the issue extensively, calling particular attention to the fact that police abuse was not evenly distributed throughout American society, but disproportionately victimized people of color.

But six years later, police abuse is still very much an American problem, as the following examples from three recent months demonstrate:

In December 1996, two men in two weeks died in handcuffs at the hands of the Palm Beach County sheriff's deputies in Florida. Lyndon Stark, 48, died of asphyxia in a cloud of pepper spray while handcuffed behind the back in a prone position. Several days earlier, Kevin Pruiksma, 27, died after being restrained by a sheriff's deputy.
In January 1997, Kurt DeSilva, 34, was shot and killed by a Pawtucket, Rhode Island police officer after a low-speed car chase. DeSilva, who was unarmed, was suspected of driving a stolen car.
In February 1997, James Wilson, 37, an unarmed motorist, was kicked and punched by three Hartford, Connecticut police officers after a brief chase which ended in front of a Bloomfield, Connecticut police station. The beating was so severe that a group of Bloomfield police intervened to stop it. "They saw activity that appeared inappropriate," the Bloomfield Police Chief stated. "He didn't resist officers... He was struck."

The fact that police abuse remains a significant problem does not mean there has been no progress. In communities all across the United States people have organized to bring about change, and some of the most successful strategies are described in this manual, now in its 3rd printing.

This manual was not inspired by, nor is it intended to generate, animosity toward the police, or to promote the perception that all police officers are prone to abuse. They are not.

Rather, it arose out of our realization that, ultimately, it will take a strong and sustained effort by community groups to bring about real and lasting reform. And it is to those efforts that this manual is dedicated.

Ira Glasser Executive Director American Civil Liberties Union

August 1997

THE BAD NEWS is... police abuse is a serious problem. It has a long history, and it seems to defy all attempts at eradication.

The problem is national: no police department in the country is known to be completely free of misconduct. Yet it must be fought locally: the nation's 19,000 law enforcement agencies are essentially independent. While some federal statutes specify criminal penalties for willful violations of civil rights and conspiracies to violate civil rights, the United States Department of Justice has been insufficiently aggressive in prosecuting cases of police abuse. There are shortcomings, too, in federal law itself, which does not permit "pattern and practice" lawsuits. The battle against police abuse must, therefore, be fought primarily on the local level.

THE GOOD NEWS is... the situation is not hopeless. Policing has seen much progress. Some reforms do work, and some types of abuse have been reduced. Today, among both police officials and rank and file officers, it is widely recognized that police brutality hinders good law enforcement.

To fight police abuse effectively, you must have realistic expectations. You must not expect too much of any one remedy because no single remedy will cure the problem. A "mix" of reforms is required. And even after citizen action has won reforms, your community must keep the pressure on through monitoring and oversight to ensure that the reforms are actually implemented.

Nonetheless, even one person, or a small group of persistent people, can make a big difference. Sometimes outmoded and abusive police practices prevail largely because no one has ever questioned them. In such cases, the simple act of spotlighting a problem can have a powerful effect that leads to reform. Just by raising questions, one person or a few people — who need not be experts — can open up some corner of the all-too-secretive and insular world of policing to public scrutiny. Depending on what is revealed, their inquiries can snowball into a full blown examination by the media, the public and politicians.

You've got to address specific problems. The first step, then, is to identify exactly what the police problems are in your city . What's wrong with your police department is not necessarily the same as what's wrong in that of another city. Police departments differ in size, quality of management, local traditions and the severity of their problems. Some departments are gravely corrupt; others are relatively "clean" but have poor relations with community residents. Also, a city's political environment, which affects both how the police operate and the possibilites for achieving reform, is different in every city. For example, it is often easier to reform police procedures in cities that have a tradition of "good government," or in cities where racial minorities are well organized politically.

The range of police problems includes —

1) Excessive use of deadly force.

2) Excessive use of physical force.

3) Discriminatory patterns of arrest.

4) Patterns of harassment of the homeless, youth, racial minorities and gays, including aggressive and discriminatory use of the "stop-and-frisk" and overly harsh enforcement of petty offenses.

5) Chronic verbal abuse of citizens, including racist, sexist and homophobic slurs.

6) Discriminatory non-enforcement of the law, such as the failure to respond quickly to calls in low-income areas and half-hearted investigations of domestic violence, rape or hate crimes.

7) Spying on political activists.

8) Employment discrimination — in hiring, promotion and assignments, and internal harassment of minority, women and gay or lesbian police personnel.

9) The "code of silence" and retaliation against officers who report abuse and/or support reforms.

10) Overreaction to gang problems, which is driven by the assumption that those who associate with known gang members must be involved in criminal activity, even in the absence of concrete evidence that this is the case. This includes illegal mass stops and arrests, and demanding photo IDs from young men based on their race and dress instead of on their criminal conduct.

11) The "war on drugs," with its overbroad searches and other tactics that endanger innocent bystanders. This "war" wastes scarce resources on unproductive "buy and bust" operations to the neglect of more promising community-based approaches.

12) Lack of accountability, such as the failure to discipline or prosecute abusive officers, and the failure to deter abuse by denying promotions and/or particular assignments because of prior abusive behavior.

13) Crowd control tactics that infringe on free expression rights and lead to unnecessary use of physical force.

HOW MUCH BRUTALITY?

How common is police brutality? Unfortunately, measuring this problem in a scientific fashion has always been very difficult. In the first systematic study, The Police and the Public (1971), Albert Reiss found the overall rate of unwarranted force to be low — only about one percent of all encounters with citizens; even less than that by another calculation. But Reiss hastened to point out that individual incidents accumulate over time, and since poor men are the most frequent victims of police abuse, they experience both real and perceived harassment by the police.

In 1982, the federal government funded a "Police Services Study," in which 12,022 randomly selected citizens were interviewed in three metropolitan areas. The study found that 13.6 percent of those surveyed had cause to complain about police service in the previous year (this included verbal abuse and discourtesy, as well as physical force). Yet, only 30 percent of the people filed formal complaints. In other words, most instances of police abuse go unreported.

Community activists, take note: Your local police department or local news media may produce official figures showing a low rate of alleged abuse, but those figures do not reflect unreported incidents. Moreover, a low overall rate masks the higher rate of abuse suffered by poor men — poor men of color in particular.

3. GATHER THE FACTS

Obtaining the most relevant information on the activities of your police department can be a tough task. That's the first thing to bear in mind about the "homework" community residents have to do in order to build a strong case for reform. In answer to critics, police chiefs often cite various official data to support their claim that they are really doing a great job. "Look at the crime rate," they say. "It's lower than in other cities." Or: "My department's arrest rate is much higher than elsewhere." The catch is that these data, though readily available to citizens, are deeply flawed, while the most important information is not always easy to get.

Forget the "crime rate." The "crime rate" figures cited by government officials are based on the FBI's Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) system, which has several serious flaws. To name only a few: First, the UCR only measures reported crime. Second, since the system is not independently audited there are no meaningful controls over how police departments use their crime data. Police officers can and do "unfound" crimes, meaning they decide that no crime occurred. They also "downgrade" crimes — for example, by officially classifying a rape as an assault. Third, reports can get "lost," either deliberately or inadvertently. There are many other technical problems that make the UCR a dubious measure of the extent of crime problems.

The National Crime Survey (NCS), published by another part of the U.S. Justice Department, provides a far more accurate estimate of the national crime rate and of long-term trends in crime. But it is a national-level estimate and does not provide data on individual cities. So the NCS isn't much help on the local level.

Forget the "clearance rate." A police department's official data on its "clearance rate," which refers to the percentage of crimes solved, do not accurately reflect that department's performance. The fact that one department "clears" 40 percent of all robberies, compared with 25 percent by another department, doesn't necessarily mean it is more effective. There are too many ways to manipulate the data, either by claiming a larger number of crimes "cleared" (inflating the numerator), or by artificially lowering the number of reported crimes (lowering the denominator).

Forget the arrest rate. Police officers have broad discretion in making and recording arrests. The Police Foundation in Washington, D.C., which conducts research on policing issues, has found great variations among police departments in their recording of arrests. In many departments, police officers take people into custody, hold them at the station, question and then release them without filling out an arrest report. For all practical purposes, these people were arrested, but their arrests don't show up in the official data. Other departments record such arrests. Thus, the department that reports a lower number of arrests may actually be taking more people into custody than the department that reports more arrests.

Forget the citizen complaint rate. Official data on the complaints filed by citizens regarding police conduct are important but present a number of problems. Many departments do not release any information on this subject. Some publish a smattering of information on complaints and the percentage of complaints sustained by the department. In more and more cities, a civilian review agency publishes this data.

Data on citizen complaints are difficult to interpret.

Some examples —

In 1990, it was widely reported that San Francisco, with less than 2,000 police officers, had more citizen complaints than Los Angeles, which has more than 8,000 officers. What that may mean, however, is that Los Angeles residents are afraid to file reports or don't believe it would do any good. San Francisco has a relatively independent civilian review process, which may encourage the filing of more complaints. Also in 1990, New York City reported a decline from previous years in the number of citizen complaints filed. But many analysts believe that simply reflected New Yorkers' widespread disillusionment with their civilian review board. Citizen complaints filed in Omaha, Nebraska doubled after the mayor allowed people to file their complaints at City Hall, as well as at the police department.
Another problem is that in some police departments with internal affairs systems, officers often try to dissuade people from filing formal complaints that will later become part of an officer's file. And the number of complaints counted is also affected by whether or not the internal affairs system accepts anonymous complaints and complaints by phone or mail, or requires in-person, sworn statements.

Thus, the official "complaint rate" (complaints per 1,000 citizens), rather than being a reliable measure of police performance, more than likely reflects the administrative customs of a particular police department.

WHAT YOU REALLY NEED TO KNOW, AND WHY

A. Police shootings. You need to know about police firearm discharges, which refer to the number of times a police weapon has been fired. This information is more complete than statistics on the number of persons shot and wounded or killed. (However, information on the race of persons shot and wounded or killed is important.) Particularly important is data on repeat shooters, which can tell you whether some officers fire their weapons at a suspiciously high rate.

POLICE SHOOTINGS — A CLOSER LOOK

Do some officers shoot more often than others?
Do white officers shoot more often that black officers?
Do young officers shoot more often than veteran officers?

The most detailed analysis of police shootings was produced by James Fyfe, a former police officer who is now a criminologist and expert on police practices. He concluded that the single most important factor determining patterns of shooting is place of assignment.

Fyfe's findings showed that: Black and white officers assigned to similar precincts fired their weapons at essentially the same rate; since new officers are assigned to less desirable, high crime precincts based on the seniority system, younger officers shoot more often than older officers; and since a disproportionate number of black officers are young due to recent affirmative action programs, black officers shoot more often than white officers — but as a function of assignment, not race.

Fyfe found significant differences in shooting patterns between police departments. The overall shooting rate in some departments was significantly higher than in others, a disparity that he attributed to differences in department policy.

SOURCE: James J. Fyfe, "Who Shoots? - - A Look At Officer, Race And Police Shooting." Journal of Police Science And Administration ; Volume 9, December 1981; pp. 367-382.

With this information, you can evaluate the use of deadly force in your department. You can also evaluate the long-term trends in shootings. Are shootings increasing or decreasing? Has there been a recent upsurge? How does the department compare with other departments — are officers shooting at a significantly higher rate in your department than elsewhere?

B. Use of physical force. You need to know how frequently police officers in your city use physical force in the day-to-day course of their encounters with citizens. Do officers try to refrain from using such force against citizens, or do they quickly and casually resort to force?

In its report on the Los Angeles Police Department in the aftermath of the March 1991 beating of Rodney King, the Christopher Commission confirmed a long held suspicion: A small number of officers were involved in an extraordinarily high percentage of use-of-force incidents. Ten percent of the officers accounted for 33.2 percent of all use-of-force incidents. The Commission was able to identify 44 such officers who were not disciplined despite the fact that they were the subjects of numerous citizen complaints.

In 1981, the U.S. Civil Rights Commission found a similar pattern in Houston and recommended, as a remedy, that police departments establish "early warning systems" to identify officers with high rates of citizen complaints. Patterns in the use of physical force reveal a lot about the "culture" of a particular police department. Clearly, a department whose officers repeatedly engage in physically coercive conduct needs reform. Police officials often deny that their personnel are prone to using force inappropriately, so if your community believes it has a problem in this area citizens must be able to support their claims with existing data, or data they have gathered themselves.

C. Official policies. You need to know what your local police department's formal, written policies are on how officers are supposed to behave in particular situations. How does the department treat domestic violence complaints? What is the policy on how officers are supposed to deal with homeless people? Does the department use canine patrols and, if so, under what circumstances?

In examining official policies, you need to evaluate them in comparison to recommended standards.

D. Lawsuits. You need to know how many lawsuits citizens have filed against your local police department. You'll want to know what the charges were, the number of officers involved, whether certain officers are named repeatedly in suits, what was the outcome and, in the case of successful suits, how much the city paid in damages.

The number of lawsuits filed against a police department can be very revealing. For example, according to the Christopher Commission the taxpayers of Los Angeles spent $67.5 million between 1991 and 1995 to resolve lawsuits brought by victims of police abuse. In 1990 alone, New York City paid victims of police misconduct a record high of more than $13 million. This kind of information can be used to mobilize middle-class taxpayers and "good-government" activists, who can then be brought into a community coalition against police abuse.

RACIAL DISCRIMINATION IN POLICE SHOOTINGS

These data indicate a clear pattern of racial discrimination. The disparity between whites and blacks shot and killed is extreme in the category of persons "unarmed and not assaultive."

POLICE SHOOTINGS IN MEMPHIS 1969-1974

Person Shot and Killed Number Shot and Killed

White Black

Armed and Assaultive 5 7

Unarmed and Assaultive 2 6

Unarmed and Not Assaultive 1 13

These are classic "fleeing felon" situations in which, prior to 1985, Memphis Police Department policy and the common law of many states permitted officers to use deadly force. In 1985, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that it is unconstitutional for a police officer to shoot a suspected felon in flight who does not pose an immediate danger to the officer or public. The case — Tennessee v. Garner — involved Edward Garner, a 15 year-old black youth who, though unarmed, was shot and killed while trying to flee the scene of a suspected burglary.

SOURCE : James J. Fyfe, "Blind Justice: Police Shootings in Memphis," Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology , 73 (1982, No. 2); pp. 707-722.

E. Minority employment. You'll need to know how many African Americans, Latinos, Asians, other minorities and women are employed by your police department and their distribution throughout the department's ranks. This information is useful in assessing, again, the "culture" of your local police department — is it internally diverse, fair and equitable? It also suggests how much value the department places on the "human relations" aspects of its work, and how responsive it is to community concerns.

WHERE TO GET INFORMATION, AND HOW

Police business is generally shrouded in secrecy, which conceals outdated policies and departmental inertia, encourages cover-ups and, of course, breeds public suspicion. But remember: Police departments are an arm of government, and the government's business is your business. Police policies, procedures, memoranda, records, reports, tape recordings, etc. should not be withheld from public view unless their release would threaten ongoing investigations, endanger officers or others, or invade someone's personal privacy.

Demanding information about police practices is an important part of the struggle to establish police accountability. Indeed, a campaign focused solely on getting information from the police can serve as a vehicle for organizing a community to tackle police abuse. Regarding all of the following categories, one of the tactics your community could employ is to interest a local investigative journalist in seeking information from the police for a series of articles. Once in hand, the information your community has collected or helped to expose is a tool for holding the police accountable for their actions.

ON DRUGS, GANGS AND POLICE OFFICER SAFETY

Police work remains dangerous, and many police officers contend that they need greater freedom to use deadly force today because of the increase in heavily armed drug gangs.

But in fact, police work is much less dangerous than it used to be. The number of officers killed in the line of duty is half of what it was nearly 20 years ago. According to the FBI, the number of officers killed dropped from 134 in 1973 to 67 in 1990. That reduced death rate is even more dramatic considering the increase in the number of police officers on duty in the field.

Police officers are rarely the victims of "drive-by" gang shootings. Innocent by-standers and rival gang members have been the victims.

The police don't need more firepower.

A. Police Shootings. Virtually every big city police department has this information on hand, since officers are required to file a report after every firearms discharge. However, departments don't usually release the information voluntarily. Strong civilian review boards in a few cities now publish the information. As for repeat shooters, this information exists in police reports, but police departments vigorously resist identifying repeat shooters. There are several ways to proceed —

As an organizing strategy, demand that the police department publish this data, identify repeat shooters and take appropriate remedial action (counseling, retraining, formal discipline, transfer, etc.)
Alternatively, since it isn't essential that officers be identified by name, demand that they be identified simply by a code number, which can focus public attention on the problem of excessive shooters.
Visit your local civilian review agency, if one exists. These agencies often have the authority to collect and release a range of information about local police conduct.

B. Physical Force. There are three potential sources of data on police use of physical force —

Data developed by community residents. Community residents can make a significant contribution to documenting physical force abuses and, in the process, organize. They can bear witness to, and record, abuse incidents, take information from others who have witnessed incidents, refute police department arguments that there is no problem and help document the inadequacies of the police department's official complaint review process. Police Watch in Los Angeles compiles such data. Police Watch can be contacted at 611 South Catalina, Suite 409, Los Angeles, CA 90005; (213) 387-3325. Check with your local ACLU to see if an organization in your community does the same.
Formal complaints filed by citizens. Most police departments do not make this information public. Some publish summary data in their annual report, so consult that document. In a number of cities, civilian review agencies publish it, so check with that agency in your city. The annual reports of the New York City Citizen Complaint Review Board (CCRB) and San Francisco's Office of Citizen Complaints (OCC) provide fairly detailed summaries.
Internal police reports. An increasing number of police departments require officers to fill out reports after any use of physical force. This is a larger set of data than the citizen complaints would provide, since many citizens don't file complaints even when they have cause to do so. Ask to see physical force reports.

C. Official Policies. Your police department has a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) manual (it may have another title) that contains the official policies of the department. The SOP manual is a public document and should be readily available. Some departments place current copies in local libraries.

Others treat it as an internal document not available to the public — a practice which is unacceptable. Demand to see the manual, if your department withholds it. As a last resort, you may be able to file suit under your state's open records law to obtain the SOP manual.

D. Lawsuits. Lawsuits brought against police departments are matters of public record. Records of suits brought in state courts reside at your local state courthouse; of suits brought in federal district court, at the nearest federal courthouse. The Lexis computer database is a source of published opinions in civilian suits brought against the police. However, collecting information from any of these sources is a very laborious task. It's better to contact your local ACLU affiliate and/or other relevant public interest groups, which may have done most of the work for you. In the back of this manual, find the name and address of your local ACLU and other organizations.

E. Minority Employment. Official data on this issue are generally available from your local police department. If the police stonewall, you can get the information from the city's personnel division. The point is to evaluate the police department's minority employment record relative to local conditions. Using current data, compare the percentage of a particular group of people in the local population with that group's representation on the police force. If, for example, Latinos are 30 percent of the population but only 15 percent of the sworn officers, then your police department is only half way toward achieving an ideal level of diversity.

4. CONTROLLING THE POLICE — COMMUNITY GOALS GOAL #1 — A CIVILIAN REVIEW BOARD

Civilian review of police activity was first proposed in the 1950s because of widespread dissatisfaction with the internal disciplinary procedures of police departments. Many citizens didn't believe that police officials took their complaints seriously. They suspected officials of investigating allegations of abuse superficially at best, and of covering up misconduct. The theory underlying the concept of civilian review is that civilian investigations of citizen complaints are more independent because they are conducted by people who are not sworn officers.

At first, civilian review was a dream few thought would ever be fulfilled. But slow, steady progress has been made, indicating that it's an idea whose time has come. By the end of 1997, more than 75 percent of the nation's largest cities (more than 80 cities across the country) had civilian review systems.

Civilian review advocates in every city have had to overcome substantial resistance from local police departments. One veteran of the struggle for civilian review has chronicled the stages of police opposition as follows —

The "over our dead bodies" stage, during which the police proclaim that they will never accept any type of civilian oversight under any circumstances;
The "magical conversion" stage, when it becomes politically inevitable that civilian review will be adopted. At this point, former police opponents suddenly become civilian review experts and propose the weakest possible models;
The "post-partum resistance" stage, when the newly established civilian review board must fight police opposition to its budget, authority, access to information, etc.

Strong community advocacy is necessary to overcome resistance, even after civilian review is established.

WHAT IS CIVILIAN REVIEW?

Civilian review systems create a lot a confusion because they vary tremendously. Some are more "civilian" than others. Some are not boards but municipal agencies headed by an executive director (who has been appointed by, and is accountable to, the mayor).

The three basic types of civilian review systems are —

Type I. Persons who are not sworn officers conduct the initial fact-finding. They submit an investigative report to a non-officer or board of non-officers, who then make a recommendation for action to the police chief. This process is the most independent and most "civilian."
Type II. Sworn officers conduct the initial fact-finding. They submit an investigative report to a non-officer or board of non-officers for a recommendation.
Type III. Sworn officers conduct the initial fact-finding and make a recommendation to the police chief. If the aggrieved citizen is not satisfied with the chief's action on the complaint, he or she may appeal to a board that includes non-officers. Obviously, this process is the least independent.

Although the above are the most common, other types of civilian review systems also exist.

WHY IS CIVILIAN REVIEW IMPORTANT?

Civilian review establishes the principle of police accountability. Strong evidence exists to show that a complaint review system encourages citizens to act on their grievances. Even a weak civilian review process is far better than none at all.
A civilian review agency can be an important source of information about police misconduct. A civilian agency is more likely to compile and publish data on patterns of misconduct, especially on officers with chronic problems, than is a police internal affairs agency.
Civilian review can alert police administrators to the steps they must take to curb abuse in their departments. Many well-intentioned police officials have failed to act decisively against police brutality because internal investigations didn't provide them with the facts.

TEN PRINCIPLES FOR AN EFFECTIVE CIVILIAN REVIEW BOARD

Independence. The power to conduct hearings, subpoena witnesses and report findings and recommendations to the public.
Investigatory Power. The authority to independently investigate incidents and issue findings on complaints.
Mandatory Police Cooperation . Complete access to police witnesses and documents through legal mandate or subpoena power.
Adequate Funding. Should not be a lower budget priority than police internal affairs systems.
Hearings. Essential for solving credibility questions and enhancing public confidence in process.
Reflect Community Diversity. Board and staff should be broadly representative of the community it serves.
Policy Recommendations. Civilian oversight can spot problem policies and provide a forum for developing reforms.
Statistical Analysis. Public statistical reports can detail trends in allegations, and early warning systems can identify officers who are subjects of unusually numerous complaints.
Separate Offices. Should be housed away from police headquarters to maintain independence and credibility with public.
Disciplinary Role. Board findings should be considered in determining appropriate disciplinary action.
The existence of a civilian review agency, a reform in itself, can help ensure that other needed reforms are implemented. A police department can formulate model policies aimed at deterring and punishing misconduct, but those policies will be meaningless unless a system is in place to guarantee that the policies are aggressively enforced.
reduce public reluctance to file complaints
reduce procedural barriers to filing complaints
enhance the likelihood that statistical reporting on complaints will be more complete
enhance the likelihood of an independent review of abuse allegations
foster confidence in complainants that they will get their "day in court" through the hearing process
increase scrutiny of police policies that lead to citizen complaints
increase opportunities for other reform efforts.

Your community's campaign should seek a strong, fully-independent and accessible civilian review system. But even with a weak system, you can press for changes to make it more independent and effective.

GOAL #2 — CONTROL OF POLICE SHOOTINGS

Considerable progress has been made in the area of police misconduct in the use of deadly force. Although the rate of deadly force abuse is still intolerably high, national data reveal reductions in the number of persons shot and killed by the police since the mid-1970s — as much as 35-to 40 percent in our 50 largest cities. This has been accompanied by a significant reduction in the racial disparities among persons shot and killed: since the 1970s, from about six people of color to one white person, down to three people of color to one white.

This progress serves as a model for controlling other forms of police behavior. And was achieved though hard work and perseverance. In the mid-1970s, police departments began developing restrictive internal policies on the use of deadly force. They adopted the "defense of life" standard: the use of deadly force only when the life of an officer or some other person is in danger. In 1985, the Supreme Court finally upheld this standard in the case of Tennessee v. Garner (see table ). However, the majority of policies adopted by police departments go beyond the Court's Garner decision, prohibiting warning shots, shots to wound and other reckless actions. Most important, these policies require officers to file written reports after each firearm discharge, and require that those reports be reviewed by higher-ranking officers.

To meet goal #2, your community must —

Ensure that the police department has a highly restrictive deadly force policy (see sample policy ). Most big city departments do. But the national trend data on shootings suggest that medium-sized and small departments have not caught up with the big cities, so much remains to be done there. Much remains to be done as well in county sheriff and state police agencies, which have not been subject to the same scrutiny as big city police departments.

Citizens should also be able to find out whether the department disciplines officers who violate its policy, and whether certain officers are repeatedly involved in questionable incidents.

THE HOUSTON POLICE DEPARTMENT'S DEADLY FORCE POLICY (1987)

POLICY — The Houston Police Department places its highest value on the life and safety of its officers and the public. The department's policies, rules and procedures are designed to ensure that this value guides police officers' use of firearms.

RULES — The policy stated above is the basis of the following set of rules that have been designed to guide officers in all cases involving the use of firearms –

RULE 1 — Police officers shall not discharge their firearms except to protect themselves or another person from imminent death or serious bodily injury.

RULE 2 — Police officers shall discharge their firearms only when doing so will not endanger innocent persons.

RULE 3 — Police officers shall not discharge their firearms to threaten or subdue persons whose actions are destructive to property or injurious to themselves but which do not represent an imminent threat of death or serious bodily injury to the officer or others.

RULE 4 — Police officers shall not discharge their firearms to subdue an escaping suspect who presents no imminent threat of death or serious bodily injury.

RULE 5 — Police officers shall not discharge their weapons at a moving vehicle unless it is absolutely necessary to do so to protect against an imminent threat to the life of the officer or others.

RULE 6 — Police officers when confronting an oncoming vehicle shall attempt to move out of the path, if possible, rather than discharge their firearms at the oncoming vehicle.

RULE 7 — Police officers shall not intentionally place themselves in the path of an oncoming vehicle and attempt to disable the vehicle by discharging their firearms.

RULE 8 — Police officers shall not discharge their firearms at a fleeing vehicle or its driver.

RULE 9 — Police officers shall not fire warning shots.

RULE 10 — Police officers shall not draw or display their firearms unless there is a threat or probable cause to believe there is a threat to life, or for inspection.

The citizens of Houston have vested in their police officers the power to carry and use firearms in the exercise of their service to society. This power is based on trust and, therefore, must be balanced by a system of accountability. The serious consequences of the use of firearms by police officers necessitate the specification of limits for officers' discretion; there is often no appeal from an officer's decision to use a firearm. Therefore, it is imperative that every effort be made to ensure that such use is not only legally warranted but also rational and humane.
The basic responsibility of police officers to protect life also requires that they exhaust all other reasonable means for apprehension and control before resorting to the use of firearms. Police officers are equipped with firearms as a means of last resort to protect themselves and others from the immediate threat of death or serious bodily injury.
Even though all officers must be prepared to use their firearms when necessary, the utmost restraint must be exercised in their use. Consequently, no officer will be disciplined for discharging a firearm in self-defense or in defense of another when faced with a situation that immediately threatens life or serious bodily injury. Just as important, no officer will be disciplined for not discharging a firearm if that discharge might threaten the life or safety of an innocent person, or if the discharge is not clearly warranted by the policy and rules of the department.
Above all, this department values the safety of its employees and the public. Likewise it believes that police officers should use firearms with a high degree of restraint. Officers' use of firearms, therefore, shall never be considered routine and is permissible only in defense of life and then only after all alternative means have been exhausted.

GOAL #3 — REDUCE POLICE BRUTALITY

Your community's principal aim here should be to get the police department to adopt and enforce a written policy governing the use of physical force. This policy should have two parts —

It should explicitly restrict physical force to the narrowest possible range of specific situations. For example, a policy on the use of batons should forbid police officers from striking citizens in "non-target" areas, such as the head and spine, where permanent injuries can result. Mace should be used defensively, not offensively. The use of electronic stun guns should be strictly controlled and reviewed, since they have great potential for abuse because they don't leave scars or bruises.
The policy should require that a police officer file a written report after any use of physical force, and that report should be automatically reviewed by high ranking officers.

Your community's second objective should be to get the police department to establish an early warning system to identify officers who are involved in an inordinate number of inappropriate physical force incidents. The incidents should then be investigated and, if verified, the officers involved should be charged, disciplined, transferred, retrained or offered counseling, depending on the severity of their misconduct. The Christopher Commission's report on the Rodney King beating ascertained that L.A. police leadership typically looked the other way when officers were involved in questionable incidents, a tolerance of brutality that helped create an atmosphere conducive to police abuses.

GOAL #4 — END POLICE SPYING

Police spying or intelligence gathering on legal but politically unpopular activities is a problem. And it's particularly difficult to deal with because spying, by definition, is a covert activity, unknown to either the victim or other witnesses.

During the 1970s, the ACLU and other organizations brought lawsuits against unconstitutional police surveillance in several cities around the country, including New York City, Chicago, Memphis and Los Angeles. The result was increased controls on police spying.

In 1976, Seattle residents discovered local police were spying on organizations of black construction workers, local Republican Party operatives, Native Americans, advocates for low-income housing and other activists whose conduct was perfectly lawful. In response to the revelations, the ACLU, along with the American Friends Service Committee and the National Lawyers Guild, formed the Coalition on Government Spying. After several years of hard work and lobbying, the coalition succeeded in bringing about passage of a comprehensive municipal law — the first of its kind in the country — that governs all police investigations and restricts the collection of political, religious and sexual information.

Called the Seattle Police Intelligence Ordinance, this law is a model for responsible police intelligence operations —

"Restricted" information (i.e., about religious, political or sexual activity) can be collected only if a person is reasonably suspected of having committed a crime, and the information must be relevant to that crime.
An independent civilian "auditor," appointed by the mayor and confirmed by the city council, must review all police authorizations to collect restricted information and have access to all other police files. The auditor must notify the police officers who are the subjects of the unlawful investigations if violations are found.
Any individual subjected to unlawful surveillance can bring a civil action in court to stop the surveillance, and to collect damages from the city.

GOAL #5 — OVERSIGHT OF POLICE POLICY

Police policies should be subject to public review and debate instead of being viewed as the sole province of police insiders. Open policy-making not only allows police officials to benefit from community input, but it also provides an opportunity for police officials to explain to the public why certain tactics or procedures may be necessary. This kind of communication can help anticipate problems and avert crises before they occur.

The Police Review Commission (a civilian review body) of Berkeley, California, holds regular, bi-monthly meetings that are open to the public where representatives of community organizations can voice criticisms, make proposals and introduce resolutions to review or reform specific police policies.

The Police Practices Project of the ACLU of Northern California successfully pressured the San Francisco Police Department to adopt enlightened policies regarding the treatment of the homeless; the use of pain-holds and batons; the deployment of plainclothes officers at protests and demonstrations; intelligence gathering; the selection of field training officers, and AIDS/HIV education for police officers. The Project has also prevented the adoption of an anti-loitering rule, a policy that would have made demonstrators financially liable for police costs, and other bad policies.

In Tucson, Arizona, a Citizens' Police Advisory Committee was incorporated into the city's municipal code in July 1990. Composed of both civilian and police representatives, it has the authority to initiate investigations of controversial incidents or questionable policies, and other oversight functions.

CITIZEN-POLICE ADVISORY COMMITTEE TUCSON, ARIZONA (Created by the Tucson Code, Sec. 10A-86)

FUNCTIONS —

1 — Consult with the governing body from time to time as may be required by the Mayor and [City] Council.

2 — Assist the police in achieving a greater understanding of the nature and causes of complex community problems in the area of human relations, with special emphasis on the advancement and improvement of relations between police and community minority groups.

3 — Study, examine and recommend methods, approaches and techniques to encourage and develop an active citizen-police partnership in the prevention of crime.

4 — Promote cooperative citizen-police programs and approaches to the solutions of community crime problems, emphasizing the principal that the administration of justice is a responsibility which requires total community involvement.

5 — Recommend procedures, programs and/or legislation to enhance cooperation among citizens of the community and police.

6 — Strive to strengthen and ensure throughout the community the application of the principle of equal protection under the law for all persons.

7 — Consult and cooperate with federal, state, city and other public agencies, commissions and committees on matters within the committee's charge.

8 — The committee may ask for and shall receive from the Police Department, a review of action taken by the Department in incidents which create community concern or controversy.

9 — The committee shall have the authority, should it so desire, to use a specific incident as a vehicle for the examination of police policies, procedures and priorities.

10 — At the discretion and express direction of the Mayor and Council, assume and undertake such other tasks or duties as will facilitate the accomplishment of these goals and objectives.

GOAL #6 — IMPROVED TRAINING

Citizens' groups in some communities have historically demanded more education and training for police officers as part of their efforts to solve the problem of police abuse. But today, this seems a less crucial issue in many police departments because the educational levels of American police officers have risen dramatically in recent years. In 1970, only 3.7 percent of the nation's police officers had four or more years of college. By 1989 that figure had risen to 22.6 percent, and a whopping 65 percent had at least some college experience. The levels of education are highest among new recruits, who in many departments have about two years of college.

The training of police personnel has also improved significantly in recent years. The average length of police academy programs has more than doubled, from about 300 to over 600 hours; in some cities, 900 or even 1200 hours are the rule. As the time devoted to training has increased, the academies have added a number of important subjects to their curricula: race relations, domestic violence, handling the mentally ill, and so on.

Unquestionably, a rigorously trained, professional police force is a desirable goal that should be pursued depending on local conditions. If citizens in your community feel that this is an important issue —

You should aim for a first-rate police academy curriculum. The curriculum should be near the high end of the current scale — 800 hours or more. It should include a mix of classroom and supervised field training.
It should include training in violence reduction techniques. In addition to being given weapons and taught how to use them, police recruits should also learn special skills — especially communications skills — to help them defuse and avert situations that might lead to the necessary use of force.
In the early 1990s, the ACLU of Georgia, after a series of incidents occurred in Atlanta involving police harassment of gays, helped provide regular training at the local police academy to sensitize new recruits on gay and lesbian concerns.
During the same period, the Police Practices Project of the ACLU of Northern California, working with other groups, organized a group of homeless people to create a video for use in sensitivity training at the San Francisco police academy.
In response to complaints that state police were harassing minority motorists and entrapping gay men during an undercover operation in the men's room of a highway service area, in the late 1980s the ACLU of New Jersey joined the NAACP and the Lesbian and Gay Coalition in initiating a series of meetings with the new superintendent of the Division of State Police. The three groups now participate in a two-day seminar on "Cultural Diversity and Professionalism" introduced by the superintendent's office. Attendance is required by all employees of the Division.

Unfortunately, even the most enlightened training programs can be undermined by veteran officers, who traditionally tell recruits out in the field to "forget all that crap they taught you in the academy."

In San Francisco some years ago, men selected as field training officers (FTOs) were found to have some of the worst complaint and litigation records in the department. The evaluation scores they gave recruits revealed their systematic attempts to weed out minority and women officers. They labeled women recruits "bad drivers," gave Asians low scores in radio communication and unfairly criticized African Americans for their report-writing. The Northern California ACLU's Police Practices Project joined other community groups in successfully pressuring the police department to adopt stricter selection criteria for FTOs to ensure greater racial and gender integration, fairer evaluations of recruits and higher quality training.

GOAL #7 — EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY

Historically, police departments, like other government agencies, have engaged in employment discrimination. People of color have been grossly underrepresented, and women were not even accepted as full-fledged officers until the 1970s.

Some progress has been made in the last 20 years or so. Police departments in several cities now have significant numbers of officers who are people of color. A few departments even approach the theoretically ideal level of maintaining forces that reflect the racial composition of the communities they serve. Most departments now recruit and assign women on an equal basis with men.

Improvements in police employment practices have come about largely as the result of litigation under existing civil rights laws. However, the courts may not be hospitable to employment discrimination claims in the future. Therefore, community groups and civil rights organizations should prepare to fight in the political arena for the integration of police departments.

In the short term, the recruitment of more women and minority officers may not result in less police abuse. Several social science studies suggest that minority and white officers do not differ greatly in their use of physical or deadly force, or in their arrest practices. (Female officers, on the other hand, are involved in citizen complaints at about half the rate of male officers, according to the New York City CCRB.) Still, in the long term, an integrated police force is a very important goal for these reasons —

Integration will break down the isolation of police departments, as they reflect more and more the composition of the communities they serve. A representative police force will probably be less likely to behave like an alien, occupying army. The visible presence of officers of color in high-ranking command positions engenders public confidence in the ability of police department personnel to identify, on human terms, with community residents.
Integration demonstrates a commitment to the principles of equal opportunity and equal protection of the law. This is a crucial message for the primary enforcement arm of "the law" to send.
Integration might, over time, reduce overtly racist/sexist activities such as brutality, harassment, and other discriminatory tactics.

GOAL #8 — CERTIFICATION AND LICENSING OF POLICE OFFICERS

Every state now has procedures for certifying or licensing police officers. These require all sworn officers to have some minimum level of training. This was one of the advances of the late 1960s and early 1970s.

An important new development is the advent of procedures for decertifying officers. Traditionally, a police officer could be fired from one department but then hired by another. As a result, persons guilty of gross misconduct could continue to work as police officers. Decertification bars a dismissed officer from further police employment in that state (though not necessarily in some other state). Between 1976 and 1983, the Florida Criminal Justice Standards and Training Commission decertified 132 police officers.

Standardized procedures for state-level certification/decertification are a worthy goal to pursue. Be aware, however, that the state commission must have sufficient power and resources to investigate misconduct complaints, and must vigorously exercise its authority. And even if it has such power, certification/decertification is only one part of the comprehensive approach that's needed to achieve meaningful police discipline.

GOAL #9 — ACCREDITATION OF YOUR POLICE DEPARTMENT

One result of the increasing number of lawsuits brought against police departments by victims of abuse over the past 20 years came from within the police profession. It was a movement for an accreditation process, similar to that in education and other fields, whereby the police would establish and enforce their own professional standards.

In 1979, the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (COALEA) was established as a joint undertaking of several major professional associations. COALEA published its first set of Standards for Law Enforcement Agencies in 1985 and issues new standards periodically.

In deciding whether your community should press for accreditation of its local police department, keep in mind these basic points —

Accreditation is a voluntary process. A police department suffers no penalty for not being accredited. (In contrast, lack of accreditation in higher education carries penalties that include an institution's ineligibility for student financial aid programs and non-recognition of its awarded credits or degrees.)
Current accreditation standards represent minimum, rather than optimum, goals. They are very good in some respects but do not go far enough in covering the critical uses of law enforcement powers.
Accreditation might make a difference in the case of a truly backward, unprofessional and poorly managed police department in that it could help stimulate much needed and long overdue changes. On the other hand, a police department can easily comply with all of the current standards and still tolerate rampant brutality, spying and other abuses.

Citizens in your particular community must decide whether, taking all of the above into account, accreditation would serve as an effective mobilization tool.

5. ORGANIZING STRATEGIES

Once your community has identified its police problems and decided what solutions to pursue, an organizing strategy for securing the desired reform must be developed.

In the 1960s and `70s, the most successful method of attacking police abuse was the lawsuit. During the tenure of Chief Justice Earl Warren, landmark Supreme Court decisions that imposed nationally uniform limits on police behavior were handed down in the cases of Mapp v. Ohio , Escobedo v. Illinois and Miranda v. Arizona . Respectively, those decisions extended Fourth Amendment protection against unreasonable searches and seizures to the states, established the Sixth Amendment right to a lawyer during police interrogations and required the police to inform persons taken into custody of their Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination.

Today, the Supreme Court under Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist demonstrates repeated hostility to individual rights. Many lower federal courts, the majority of whose presiding judges were appointed by Presidents Ronald Reagan and George Bush, follow this trend. More and more, therefore, the task of opposing police abuse falls not to lawyers, but to the citizens in the communities.

The following profiles of successful organizing strategies can guide your community's attempts to effectively challenge police abuse.

STRATEGY #1 — BUILD COALITIONS

PROFILE: The Indianapolis Law Enforcement and Community Relations Coalition

The year is 1984. Galvanized by a series of brutal and unjustified police killings that have sparked tensions between the police department and the African American community, 19 civil rights, religious, professional and civic organizations form the Indianapolis Law Enforcement/Community Relations Coalition. Coalition members include the Urban League, Baptist Ministerial Alliance, Community Centers of Indianapolis, Hispano-American Center, Indiana Council of Churches, Jewish Community Relations Council, Mental Health Association, NAACP and the United Methodist Church.

The coalition, co-chaired by the Executive Director of the Urban League and a designee of the Indiana Civil Liberties Union, was instrumental in the establishment of a civilian review board in 1989, despite considerable political opposition. Since that time, it has worked to strengthen the authority of that body, which still lacks jurisdiction over police shooting fatalities.

A recent series of highly publicized episodes of police misconduct, culminating in an incident in August, 1996, which newspapers dubbed "the police brawl" lent new urgency to the Coalition's efforts. Representatives of the Coalition were tapped by the Greater Indianapolis Process Committee to serve on a Working Group of citizens charged with reviewing the Civilian Review Process and recommending changes in jurisdiction and composition. A co-chair of the Coalition served as co-chair of the Working Group.

The broad-based Coalition is credited by many for drawing attention to management problems within the Indianapolis Police Department in addition to the tensions between officers and minority communities. The Coalition's research provided the basis for the deliberations of the Working Group; even more important, once the Working Group has delivered its recommendations, monitoring the resulting process will be the responsibility of the Coalition.

Key to the Coalition's success has been its broadbased composition and its commitment to participatory decision-making.

STRATEGY #2 — MONITOR THE POLICE

PROFILE: Copwatch, Berkeley, California

Copwatch is a community organization whose stated purpose is "to reduce police harassment and brutality," and "to uphold Berkeley's tradition of tolerance and diversity." Its main activities are monitoring police conduct through personal observation, recording and publicizing incidents of abuse and harassment, and working with Berkeley's civilian review board — the Police Review Commission.

Copwatch sends teams of volunteers into the community on three-hour shifts. Each team is equipped with a flashlight, tape recorder, camera, "incident" forms (see sample form ) and Copwatch Handbooks that describe the organization's non-violent tactics, relevant laws, court decisions, police policies and what citizens should do in an emergency. At the end of a shift, the volunteers return their completed forms to the COPWATCH office. If they have witnessed an harassment incident, they call one of the organization's cooperating lawyers, who follows up on the incident.

Copwatch holds weekly meetings, and its activists attend public meetings of the Police Review Commission. It publishes a quarterly newsletter, Copwatch Report, which features a "Cop Blotter" column that describes examples of police misconduct "gleaned from Copwatch incident reports."

Although the group's impact has not been studied, Copwatch activists are convinced that their monitoring activities deter and, thus, reduce harassment and abuse.

COPWATCH INCIDENT REPORT FORM

Date Time Place Officers (names & numbers) Police Car License No. Arrestee/Victim's Name Other information Suspected charge Witnesses (names & phone numbers) Injuries? If yes, describe Photos or tapes? Does arrestee need a lawyer? Description of incident Name of Copwatcher

STRATEGY #3 — USE OPEN RECORDS LAWS

PROFILE: The Seattle Coalition on Government Spying

The year is 1976. During confirmation hearings for a new Seattle police chief, it comes to light that the city's police department maintains political intelligence files on citizens who are not suspected of any criminal activity. Some time later, a local newspaper prints the names of 150 individuals that were found in police files.

A group of citizens, concerned about this clear violation of First Amendment and privacy rights, forms the Coalition on Government Spying.

One of the coalition's first acts is to file suit under the Washington public disclosure law, seeking access to the police department's intelligence files. Under the law, the police can refuse to disclose the files only if "nondisclosure is essential to effective law enforcement." Since the files are purely political, the court orders full disclosure.

The coalition's charges of abuse turn out to be well-founded. Not only do the files show that the police have engaged in unconstitutional surveillance of political activists, but they are full of inaccurate, misleading and damaging information.

The lawsuit and its revelations receive a lot of media attention, which helps build strong public support for reform. The result: Seattle enacts the first and only municipal ordinance in the country that restricts police surveillance.

OPEN RECORDS LAWS

Each of the 50 states has a freedom of information act or an open records law. Virtually all such laws were enacted post-Watergate, in the mid-1970s. Under these laws, community groups can request and obtain access to police reports, investigations, policies and tape recordings regarding a controversial incident, such as a beating, shooting, or false arrest. If the police refuse to disclose information to representatives of your community, that refusal in itself should become the focus of organizing and public attention. Ultimately, your community can sue to compel disclosure, unless the records you seek are specifically exempted.

FLORIDA FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT

General state policy on public records.

It is the policy of this state that all state, county, and municipal records shall at all times be open for a personal inspection by any person.

Definitions.

"Public records" means all documents, papers, letters, maps, books, tapes, photographs, films, sound recordings or other material, regardless of physical form or characteristics, made or received pursuant to law or ordinance or in connection with the transaction of official business by any agency.
"Agency" shall mean any state, county, district, authority or municipal officer, department, division, board, bureau, commission or other separate unit of government.

Inspection and examination of records; exemptions.

Every person who has custody of public records shall permit the records to be inspected and examined by any person desiring to do so, at reasonable times, under reasonable conditions. The custodian shall furnish copies or certified copies of the records upon payment of fees.
All public records which presently are provided by law to be confidential or which are prohibited from being inspected by the public, whether by general or special law, shall be exempt from the provisions of subsection 1.

STRATEGY #4 — EDUCATE THE PUBLIC

PROFILE: Police Practices Project, ACLU of Northern California

The Police Practices Project conducts, among other activities, education programs to teach citizens about their constitutional rights. One aspect of the police abuse problem, the project believes, is that the police tend to abuse certain people partly because they think these individuals don't know their rights, or don't know how to assert their rights. The project also believes that its programs have the added advantage of recruiting groups and individuals to work in police reform campaigns.

The project, working with other groups, has sponsored training programs for homeless people, as well as for advocates and service providers for the homeless. The training included the distribution of copies of police policies, information on homeless people's legal rights, suggestions on how to observe and record police misconduct and presentations by members of the local civilian review agency. A videotape was made of one of the project's training sessions for use by other groups outside the Bay Area.

The project also publishes wallet-size cards in English, Spanish and Chinese that inform citizens about what to do or say in encounters with the police. These cards have been widely distributed in the community. (One card-holder reported that he pulled out his card when confronted by a police officer, only to have the officer reach into his wallet and pull out his own copy of the same card!) The ACLU National Office has created a similar card, with a national scope. (You can download a copy to print out below.)

The project believes that individual citizens and community groups become informed about police policies just by participating in the preparation of educational materials and training sessions. That participation also fosters awareness about particular areas of police practice that need reform. Most important, education empowers even the most disenfranchised people and helps deter the police from treating them abusively.

DOWNLOAD WHAT TO DO IF YOU'RE STOPPED BY THE POLICE ( ACLU Pocket Card on Police Encounters)

STRATEGY #5: — USE THE POLITICAL PROCESS TO WIN REFORMS

PROFILE: The New York Civil Liberties Union's Campaign for a "Real Civilian Review Board"

The time is August 1988; the place, New York City. Manhattan's Lower East Side is rocked by one of the most serious outbreaks of police violence in years. Declaring a curfew, the police begin to eject homeless people and their supporters from Tompkins Square Park. Fifty-two people, most of them innocent bystanders, sustain serious injuries at the hands of the police in the ensuing violence. Much of the violence is recorded on video. Yet the officers who are guilty of misconduct go virtually unpunished; only one receives more than a 30-day suspension from the force.

The city's Civilian Complaint Review Board (CCRB) comes under heightened scrutiny. Although it was established in the early 1950s and gradually strengthened over the years, the CCRB is still criticized for its lack of independence and secretive proceedings. Half of its 12 members are appointed by the mayor, the other half by the police commissioner. Most of the CCRB's investigators are police officers.

In the wake of the Tompkins Square events, the New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU) spearheads "A Campaign for a Real Civilian Review Board" and organizes a coalition of civil rights organizations to back it up. The goal of the campaign is the establishment of a new, all-civilian CCRB that will be totally independent of the police department.

During 1991, the campaign calls on the city's community boards to pass resolutions in support of "a real CCRB." (The community boards are elected bodies that have advisory jurisdiction over a variety of local matters, such as zoning and land use). Campaign spokespeople debate police department representatives before some 30 community boards throughout the city, and 19 boards pass resolutions calling for revisions of the present system (see box below). Each board that passes a resolution becomes a member of the campaign coalition.

Coalition members set up tables at street fairs and other community events to collect signatures on petitions for "a real CCRB." More than 1,000 signatures are collected.

The NYCLU, after garnering this broad support, develops legislation for submission to the City Council. The bill is endorsed by 14 Council members and is adopted.

RESOLUTION ON THE CIVILIAN COMPLAINT REVIEW BOARD OF NEW YORK CITY

Adopted by Community Board #9, Serving Hamilton Heights/Manhattanville & Morningside Heights New York City

Whereas, many New Yorkers are concerned about the independence and effectiveness of the present Civilian Complaint Review Board; and

Whereas, with the proposed hiring of 9,600 new police officers, unfortunately, there may be a wider possibility of alleged police abuse; and

Whereas, if alleged police abuse has been charged, New Yorkers should have an effective government review agency that will render fair and full investigation and hearing of their allegations without pressure from the Police Department now, therefore, be it

Resolved, that the new board should have investigators and board members that are civilians with no allegiances to the Police Department and should have the power to subpoena witnesses to insure cooperation from the police officers or other concerned individuals. It should hold regular public hearings and maintain procedural safeguards to protect the rights of civilians and police officers. It should have expanded jurisdiction that includes all police and peace officers employed by the City and quasi-city agencies; and in adopting this resolution we are following the lead of Community Boards #4, #11 and #12.

STRATEGY #6 — LOBBY FOR STATE LEGISLATION

PROFILE: The ACLU of California's Legislative Approach to Police Misconduct

The ACLU's affiliates in Southern California, Northern California and San Diego developed a model state law to address the problem of police abuse. Their proposed legislation includes the following —

Establishing an Office of the Special Police Prosecutor to prosecute cases of police abuse. Independent prosecutors are needed because conventional city and county prosecutors are reluctant to bring charges against the same police officers they rely on for evidence in other criminal cases;
Establishing state-mandated civilian police review boards for local police;
Breaking the "code of silence" by making it a crime for a police officer to fail to report criminal wrongdoing by another officer. This provision would also protect a reporting officer from retaliation;
Requiring statewide data collection on police abuse and misconduct;
Restricting the use of force and "pain compliance" techniques;
Breaking down the wall of secrecy that shields complaints of police misconduct and most complaint investigative processes from public scrutiny and oversight.

Although the proposal has not yet been adopted, ACLU lobbyists have waged a largely successful battle against a flood of dangerous bills introduced into the California Legislature by police lobbyists. In the process, the ACLU has learned that an informed presence in state legislatures is essential to counteracting well-funded and influential police lobbies that sometimes oppose or undercut reform efforts.

TIPS ON DEALING WITH A POLICE MATTER (provided by the ACLU of San Diego and Imperial Counties)

Thank you for contacting the ACLU. Your information is very important to us in our effort to monitor police abuse in your community. If you have been a victim of police misconduct and wish to pursue the matter in any manner, you should first contact an attorney to advise you. Nothing that is written in these tips is intended to constitute legal advice, which can only come from an attorney experienced in this area of law. The San Diego County Bar Association's Lawyer Referral Service maintains a panel for referrals of attorneys in this area of law. The number of the referral service is 231-8585.

If you believe you have been the victim of police abuse or misconduct and would like to take action, some of the possible options are —

— Pursue your case formally through the municipal, superior, or federal court systems (normally an attorney is necessary).
— File a complaint with the law enforcement agency involved (addresses and phone numbers are in the phone book). Your complaint should be made in writing by sending a letter to the chief of police or the head of the law enforcement agency involved. Your complaint does not need to be submitted on police department forms — a letter will suffice. The letter should specify what your complaint involves (e.g., false arrest, excessive force, improper procedures, etc. ) A copy should be sent to the Internal Affairs Division of the law enforcement agency. Make sure to keep a copy for yourself.
— Report the incident to one of the two law enforcement civilian review boards in the San Diego area — one for the County of San Diego (typically for matters involving the San Diego Sheriff's Department or Probation Department — phone number 685-2200) and the one for the City of San Diego (for matters involving the San Diego Police Department — phone number 236-5933).
— Take the law enforcement officer(s) to small claims court to recover damages you have suffered.

You may want to try one or more of these options to vindicate your rights. An attorney can help you decide among these options by explaining what is involved with each, and we urge you to consult one before proceeding. If you decide to pursue your claim you must take action quickly because the law imposes severe time limits for nearly every option listed above. If you do not comply with those time limits you will lose your right to take any action. Once again, an attorney experienced in this area of law can advise you regarding the time limits and your rights with respect to them.

Keep your eye on the big picture. On the one hand, each individual reform is only one step on a long road to correcting the deeply entrenched problem of police misconduct; on the other hand, important and genuine reforms can be won.

A well-organized, focused campaign against police abuse can draw broad community support. The key is to transform that support into realistic demands and develop strategies that turn those demands into concrete reforms.

We hope the information and advice contained in this manual inspires and equips your community to effectively tackle the problem of police misconduct from the grass roots up. Reform of police practices is in the best interests of every American, including the men and women in blue.

You have our best wishes for success. Keep in touch.

Bibliography

American Civil Liberties Union. On The Line: Police Brutality and its Remedies. New York. April 1991. The ACLU's response to the Rodney King beating. Case studies and recommendations for local and federal remedies.

ACLU of Southern California. The Call for Change Goes Unanswered. March 1992. A year after Rodney King beating, this study, based on original research, reveals that there has been little improvement in the responsiveness of the LA Police Department to citizen complaints.

ACLU of Southern California. Pepper Spray Update: More Fatalities, More Questions , June 1995. Original research establishes that pepper spray can be fatal, and ACLU makes recommendations to avoid further tragedies.

ACLU of Washington. A Call for Accountability: Steps to Reform Investigations of Police Misconduct. August 1993. Critique of Seattle Police Department's handling of civilian complaints and recommendation that an independent civilian review board be established.

ACLU of Washington. Coalition on Government Spying: Seattle's Surveillance Ordinance. March 1980. Describes events leading up to city's adoption of law that limits police surveillance of citizens.

American Friends Service Committee. The Police Threat to Political Liberty. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. 1979. Comprehensive report on police spying, with separate chapters on Seattle, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Baltimore and Jackson, Mississippi.

Bouza, Anthony. The Police Mystique: An Insider's Look at Cops, Crime and the Criminal Justice System. New York. Plenum Press. 1990. The author, retired police chief of Minneapolis and long considered an innovative thinker, analyzes what's wrong with American policing.

Bureau of Justice Statistics. Criminal Victimization in the United States , 1989. U.S. Government Printing Office. Washington, D.C. 1991. National crime survey published annually by U.S. Department of Justice.

Chevigny, Paul. Cops and Rebels: A Study Of Provocation. Pantheon. New York. 1972. Case study of police infiltration and disruption of the Black Panther Party in New York City.

Chevigny, Paul. Police Brutality in the United States: A Policy Statement on the Need for Federal Oversight. Human Rights Watch. New York. 1991. Review of potential federal remedies for police misconduct. Published in response to the Rodney King incident.

Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies. Standards for Law Enforcement Agencies. These official standards for police departments are the bare minimum. Revised regularly.

Committee on the Judiciary of the U.S. Senate. Freedom of Information: A Compilation of State Laws. U.S. Government Printing Office. Washington, D.C. 1978. Comprehensive survey of state open records laws.

Compendium of International Civilian Oversight Agencies. International Association for Civilian Oversight of Law Enforcement. Evanston, Illinois. 1990. Summaries and excerpts of materials on selected civilian review systems. Includes chart that compares systems.

COPWATCH Report. 2022 Blake Street, Berkeley, CA 94704. Quarterly newsletter published by community-based, volunteer organization that monitors police activity.

Couper, David C. How To Rate Your Local Police. Police Executive Research Forum, 1983. Brochure that examines the issues of leadership, policy and organizational characteristics of police agencies. Useful because it goes beyond such traditional methods of evaluating police departments as the crime rate, number of arrests, clearance rate, ratio of officers to citizens and response time.

Donner, Frank. Protectors of Privilege: Red Squads and Police Repression in Urban America. University of California Press. Berkeley. 1990. Epic study of police role in suppressing grass roots social protest.

Fyfe, James J. "Administrative Interventions on Police Shooting Discretion: An Empirical Examination." Journal of Criminal Justice #7 (Winter 1979). pp. 309-323. The first and still the most important study of the impact of restrictive shooting policies on police use of deadly force.

Geller, William A. "Deadly Force: What We Know." Journal of Police Science and Administration ; Volume 10 (1982); pp. 151-177. An important, very informative work about the use of deadly force by police officers.

Goldman, Roger and Puro, Steven. "Decertification of Police: An Alternative to Traditional Remedies for Police Misconduct." Hastings Constitutional Law Quarterly #15 (Fall 1987). pp. 45-80. The authors, based in St. Louis, are the nation's leading experts on police decertification.

Goldstein, Herman. Problem-Oriented Policing. McGraw-Hill. New York. 1990. The most important new concept in policing discussed by one of its creators.

Matulia, Kenneth J. A Balance of Forces: Model Deadly Force Policy and Procedure . Second edition. International Association of Chiefs of Police. Gaithersburg, Maryland. 1985. Presents comparative data on use of deadly force.

Minneapolis Police Civilian Review Working Committee. A Model for Civilian Review of Police Conduct in Minneapolis. Minneapolis, Minnesota. September 1989. Report to Mayor and City Council by special committee formed to propose specific structure for a new civilian review system. Analysis and evaluation of competing arguments regarding authority and role of civilian review.

New York Civil Liberties Union. Police Abuse: The Need for Civilian Investigation and Oversight. New York. 1990. NYCLU's report and recommendations following the local Civilian Complaint Review Board's whitewash of a police riot that took place in Tompkins Square Park, in downtown New York City.

Pate, Anthony and Edwin E. Hamilton. The Big Six: Policing America's Largest Cities. Police Foundation, 1991. Impressive report on the police departments of New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Detroit and Houston. Uses statistical analysis to compare departments' performance in many areas — firearm discharges; citizen complaints; race, gender and other characteristics of personnel; expenditures per citizen; recruitment, selection and entry requirements; salaries and benefits.

Reiss, Albert J. The Police and the Public. Yale University Press. New Haven, Connecticut. 1971. The most comprehensive sociological study of routine police work, based on direct observations.

Report of the Independent Commission on the Los Angeles Police Department. Los Angeles. July 1991. Official report of the civilian commission established to investigate the LAPD following the Rodney King beating in March 1991. Includes recommendations for L.A. police reforms.

Royal Canadian Mounted Police Public Complaints Commission. Federal and Provincial Police Oversight Legislation: A Comparison of Statutory Provisions. Ottawa, Canada. 1991. Extensive comparison charts on legislation that provides for Canadian civilian review systems. Updated periodically.

Sherman, Lawrence W. and Ellen G. Gohn. Citizens Killed By Big City Police, 1970-1984. Crime Control Institute. Washington, D.C. 1986. Presents comparative data on police use of deadly force.

Sherman, Lawrence W. and Barry Glick. The Quality of Police Arrest Statistics. The Police Foundation. Washington, D.C. 1984. Comparison study of how different police departments record arrests, and the impact different practices have on arrest statistics.

U.S. Commission on Civil Rights. Who Is Guarding the Guardians: A Report on Police Practices. Government Printing Office. Washington, D.C. 1981. A comprehensive review of police misconduct with the most complete set of recommendations to be found anywhere. Based on Civil Rights Commission hearings on the Philadelphia and Houston police departments.

Walker, Samuel. "The Effectiveness of Civilian Review: Observations on Recent Trends and New Issues Regarding the Civilian Review of the Police," American Journal of Police , Vol. XI, No 4 1992.

Many archival documents, as well as up-the-moment information pertaining to policing issues and other matters of criminal justice can be found through the ACLU online at < http://archive.aclu.org> on the internet, or on America Online at keyword: ACLU.

ORGANIZATIONS

American Friends Service Committee Immigration Law Enforcement Monitoring Project 3515 Allen Parkway Houston, TX 77019 Tel: (713) 524-5428 Monitors abuses by Immigration and Naturalization Service, Border Patrol and other agencies. Model computerized tracking program for incidents of abuse.

Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (COALEA) 4242-B Chain Bridge Road Fairfax, VA 22030 Tel: (703) 352-4225 Private accrediting board for law enforcement agencies. Organized and supported by law enforcement agencies. Publishes a set of accreditation standards.

Community United Against Violence (CUAV) 514 Castro Street San Francisco, CA 94114 Tel: (415) 864-3112 Lesbian/gay rights advocacy organization. Extensive experience conducting law enforcement sensitivity training on lesbian/gay issues.

COPWATCH 2022 Blake Street Berkeley, CA 94704 Tel: (510) 548-0425 Community-based volunteer organization which monitors police activity in an effort to preserve the rights of all citizens, including the homeless, to fair treatment under the law.

International Association For Civilian Oversight of Law Enforcement (IACOLE) 1204 Wesley Avenue Evanston, IL 60202 Tel: (312) 353-4391 Professional association of persons involved in civilian review of the police. Membership consists primarily of staff members of local civilian review agencies. Annual meeting. Newsletter. Periodically publishes a compendium of civilian review agencies.

International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) 13 Firstfield Road P.O. Box 6010 Gaithersburg, MD 20878 Primary professional association for chiefs of police. Traditionally dominated by chiefs from small town police departments.

International Union of Police Associations (IUPA) 1016 Duke Street Alexandria, VA 22314 Tel: (703) 549-7473 National federation of local police unions. Does not represent all local unions.

National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) 4805 Mt. Hope Drive Baltimore, MD 21215 Tel: (301) 358-8900 Civil rights organization with chapters across the country. Promotes civil rights through litigation, lobbying and community organizing.

National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers 1110 Vermont Avenue, N.W., Suite 1150 Washington, D.C. 20005 Tel. (202) 872-8688 Develops public policy recommendations on matters pertaining to the criminal justice system and lobbies Congress.

National Black Police Association (NBPA) 3251 Mt. Pleasant St. N.W. Washington, D.C. 20010 Tel: (202) 986-2070 Association of Black police officers. Resource for community groups working on police abuse issues. Speakers. Brochure on how to handle encounters with police, entitled, "What To Do When Stopped by the Police."

National Coalition for Police Accountability (NCPA) 59 E. Van Buren, Suite 2418 Chicago, IL 60603 Tel: (312) 663-5392 New coalition of groups working on police abuse issues. Members include legal, advocacy, victims, minority police and religious organizations. Plans for annual conference, newsletter and other forms of networking.

National Gay and Lesbian Task Force 1734 14th Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20009 Tel: (202) 332-6483 Civil rights organization that promotes freedom and equality for lesbians and gay men. Its Anti-Violence Project publishes an annual report on "Anti-Gay/Lesbian Violence, Victimization & Defamation" and a pamphlet, "Dealing With Violence: A Guide for Gay and Lesbian People."

National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE) 908 Pennsylvania Avenue, S.E. Washington, D.C. 20003 Tel: (202) 546-8811 Non-profit organization of professional law enforcement officials dedicated to improving the quality of police services for all citizens.

National Urban League 500 E. 62nd Street New York, NY 10021 Tel: (212) 310-9000 Civil rights organization that focuses on the economic condition and empowerment of the African American community.

Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) 2300 M Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20037 Tel: (202) 466-7820 Professional association of police chiefs from the big cities in the United States. Conducts research and management consulting. Issues position papers and policy statements on important issues in policing.

Police Foundation 1001 22nd St., N.W., Suite 200 Washington, D.C. 20037 Tel: (202) 833-1460 Non-profit consulting group, primarily engaged in research and demonstration projects on innovative police programs. Involved in some of the most important research projects in policing since the 1970s.

Police Watch 611 S. Catalina, Suite 409 Los Angeles, CA 90005 Tel: (213) 387-3325 Model legal referral program for victims of police abuse. Some training for police abuse litigators. Data base on incidents of abuse in Southern California.

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Corrupt, brutal and unprofessional? Africa-wide survey of police finds diverging patterns

Researcher, University of Cape Town

research on police abuse and corruption complains finds that

Consultant, University of Cape Town

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Disclosure statement

Dr. Matthias Krönke works for Afrobarometer.

Dr. Thomas Isbell works in International Development Cooperation. He is affiliated with Afrobarometer.

Makanga Ronald Kakumba is a researcher in the Afrobarometer Analysis Unit. He is affiliated with Uhasselt University.

University of Cape Town provides funding as a partner of The Conversation AFRICA.

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Africans generally have a low regard for the quality of policing on the continent. Perceptions of police misconduct, corruption and brutality are widespread, according to a new survey by Afrobarometer . The independent research network surveyed 39 countries between 2021 and 2023.

Our survey offers new evidence of how Africans experience and assess their police. It shows people often have to contend with demands for bribes from police officers. But assessments varied by country: in some, police were said to be helpful.

Afrobarometer currently surveys 39 of Africa’s 55 countries .

As researchers at Afrobarometer, we have published on police professionalism and other government institutions for several years.

Our analysis also reveals that negative perceptions of police professionalism and corruption go hand in hand with low public trust in the police, poor marks on government performance, and citizens’ sense of insecurity.

Encounters with police

While some citizens seek assistance from the police (to report a crime, for example), others might only encounter the police in less voluntary situations, such as at a checkpoint or traffic stop or during an investigation. Across the 39-country sample, only 13% of respondents said they had requested police assistance during the previous 12 months. Three times as many (40%) reported encountering the police in other situations.

Among respondents who asked for police assistance, more than half (54%) said it had been easy to get the help they needed. More than three-fourths found it easy in Burkina Faso (77%) and Mauritius (76%), though no more than half as many said the same in Malawi (37%), Madagascar (37%) and Sudan (33%).

Many respondents reported a police practice that was less than helpful: stopping drivers on the road without a valid reason. On average, 39% of Africans said the police “often” or “always” stopped drivers without good reason, in addition to 26% who said they “sometimes” did so (Figure 1). The practice is particularly widespread in Gabon (68% often/always) and Kenya (66%). In contrast, fewer than one in five respondents in Ethiopia (18%), Cabo Verde (16%) and Benin (16%) had this complaint.

Both seeking police assistance and being stopped on the road may be a prelude to being asked for money. Among respondents who said they had asked for police assistance during the previous year, 36% said they had had to pay a bribe, give a gift or do a favour to get the help they needed (Figure 2). This proportion reached astonishing levels in Liberia (78%), Nigeria (75%), Sierra Leone (72%) and Uganda (71%).

Similarly, among citizens who encountered the police in other situations, 37% said they had to pay a bribe to avoid a problem. Liberia (70%) again ranked worst, joined by Guinea (66%), Congo-Brazzaville (65%) and Uganda (64%). Seychelles and Cabo Verde performed best on both counts (1%-4%).

Considering how many Africans personally experience having to bribe the police, it may not be surprising that on average across 39 countries, the police were more widely seen as corrupt than civil servants, officials in the presidency, or any other public institutions or leaders the surveys asked about. Almost half (46%) of respondents said that “most” or “all” police officials were corrupt.

Police brutality

One of the harshest criticisms levelled against some police officers was that they used excessive force in their interactions with the people they were meant to serve and protect.

As Figure 3 shows, almost four in 10 respondents (38%) said the police “often” or “always” used excessive force in managing protests or demonstrations. Another 27% said they “sometimes” did so. Only 29% said the police were “rarely” or “never” guilty of brutality in their handling of protesters. The perception of frequent police brutality against protesters was most common in Gabon (64% often/always) and was widespread in some countries that are scheduled to have national elections this year, including Senegal (60%), Guinea (51%) and Tunisia (45%).

Police professionalism

Do these popular perceptions add up to a police force that is seen as professional?

Only one-third (32%) of respondents said the police in their countries “often” or “always” operated in a professional manner and respected the rights of all citizens, while 32% said they “sometimes” and 34% said they “rarely” or “never” did (Figure 4).

In just five countries did more than half of the respondents think their police usually acted professionally: Burkina Faso (58%), Morocco (57%), Niger (55%), Benin (54%) and Mali (54%). Senegal ranked sixth, at just 50%. Fewer than one in five respondents saw police as usually professional in Sierra Leone (19%), Eswatini (19%), Kenya (18%), Congo-Brazzaville (17%) and Nigeria (13%).

Significance of findings

These findings raise questions about the quality of policing on the African continent, highlighting notably negative experiences and evaluations of the police in many – but not all – countries. For example, in Burkina Faso, Morocco and Benin, police scored relatively well across multiple performance indicators.

More broadly, our findings point to broad cross-country patterns of how police professionalism, integrity and respectful conduct are correlated with more positive citizen attitudes towards the police.

African governments looking to change the unfavourable public perceptions of the police – and of government performance in the fight against crime – might take a closer look at which dimensions of police performance matter in their country, and which better-performing police forces might have solutions to share.

All graphics have been redacted from showing 39 countries to 10 because of space constraints.

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10 things we know about race and policing in the U.S.

Days of protests across the United States in the wake of George Floyd’s death in the custody of Minneapolis police have brought new attention to questions about police officers’ attitudes toward black Americans, protesters and others. The public’s views of the police, in turn, are also in the spotlight. Here’s a roundup of Pew Research Center survey findings from the past few years about the intersection of race and law enforcement.

How we did this

Most of the findings in this post were drawn from two previous Pew Research Center reports: one on police officers and policing issues published in January 2017, and one on the state of race relations in the United States published in April 2019. We also drew from a September 2016 report on how black and white Americans view police in their communities. (The questions asked for these reports, as well as their responses, can be found in the reports’ accompanying “topline” file or files.)

The 2017 police report was based on two surveys. One was of 7,917 law enforcement officers from 54 police and sheriff’s departments across the U.S., designed and weighted to represent the population of officers who work in agencies that employ at least 100 full-time sworn law enforcement officers with general arrest powers, and conducted between May and August 2016. The other survey, of the general public, was conducted via the Center’s American Trends Panel (ATP) in August and September 2016 among 4,538 respondents. (The 2016 report on how blacks and whites view police in their communities also was based on that survey.) More information on methodology is available here .

The 2019 race report was based on a survey conducted in January and February 2019. A total of 6,637 people responded, out of 9,402 who were sampled, for a response rate of 71%. The respondents included 5,599 from the ATP and oversamples of 530 non-Hispanic black and 508 Hispanic respondents sampled from Ipsos’ KnowledgePanel. More information on methodology is available here .

Majorities of both black and white Americans say black people are treated less fairly than whites in dealing with the police and by the criminal justice system as a whole. In a 2019 Center survey , 84% of black adults said that, in dealing with police, blacks are generally treated less fairly than whites; 63% of whites said the same. Similarly, 87% of blacks and 61% of whites said the U.S. criminal justice system treats black people less fairly.

More than eight-in-ten black adults say blacks are treated less fairly than whites by police, criminal justice system

Black adults are about five times as likely as whites to say they’ve been unfairly stopped by police because of their race or ethnicity (44% vs. 9%), according to the same survey. Black men are especially likely to say this : 59% say they’ve been unfairly stopped, versus 31% of black women.

Black men are far more likely than black women to say they've been unfairly stopped by the police

White Democrats and white Republicans have vastly different views of how black people are treated by police and the wider justice system. Overwhelming majorities of white Democrats say black people are treated less fairly than whites by the police (88%) and the criminal justice system (86%), according to the 2019 poll. About four-in-ten white Republicans agree (43% and 39%, respectively).

Vast gaps between white Republicans, Democrats on views of treatment of blacks

Nearly two-thirds of black adults (65%) say they’ve been in situations where people acted as if they were suspicious of them because of their race or ethnicity, while only a quarter of white adults say that’s happened to them. Roughly a third of both Asian and Hispanic adults (34% and 37%, respectively) say they’ve been in such situations, the 2019 survey found.

Most blacks say someone has acted suspicious of them or as if they weren't smart

Black Americans are far less likely than whites to give police high marks for the way they do their jobs . In a 2016 survey, only about a third of black adults said that police in their community did an “excellent” or “good” job in using the right amount of force (33%, compared with 75% of whites), treating racial and ethnic groups equally (35% vs. 75%), and holding officers accountable for misconduct (31% vs. 70%).

Blacks are about half as likely as whites to have a positive view of police treatment of racial and ethnic groups or officers' use of force

In the past, police officers and the general public have tended to view fatal encounters between black people and police very differently. In a 2016 survey of nearly 8,000 policemen and women from departments with at least 100 officers, two-thirds said most such encounters are isolated incidents and not signs of broader problems between police and the black community. In a companion survey of more than 4,500 U.S. adults, 60% of the public called such incidents signs of broader problems between police and black people. But the views given by police themselves were sharply differentiated by race: A majority of black officers (57%) said that such incidents were evidence of a broader problem, but only 27% of white officers and 26% of Hispanic officers said so.

Most white, Latino officers say encounters between blacks and police are isolated incidents; majority of black officers disagree

Around two-thirds of police officers (68%) said in 2016 that the demonstrations over the deaths of black people during encounters with law enforcement were motivated to a great extent by anti-police bias; only 10% said (in a separate question) that protesters were primarily motivated by a genuine desire to hold police accountable for their actions. Here as elsewhere, police officers’ views differed by race: Only about a quarter of white officers (27%) but around six-in-ten of their black colleagues (57%) said such protests were motivated at least to some extent by a genuine desire to hold police accountable.

Most officers say protests mainly motivated by bias toward police

White police officers and their black colleagues have starkly different views on fundamental questions regarding the situation of blacks in American society, the 2016 survey found. For example, nearly all white officers (92%) – but only 29% of their black colleagues – said the U.S. had made the changes needed to assure equal rights for blacks.

Police, public divided by race over whether attaining equality requires more changes

A majority of officers said in 2016 that relations between the police in their department and black people in the community they serve were “excellent” (8%) or “good” (47%). However, far higher shares saw excellent or good community relations with whites (91%), Asians (88%) and Hispanics (70%). About a quarter of police officers (26%) said relations between police and black people in their community were “only fair,” while nearly one-in-five (18%) said they were “poor” – with black officers far more likely than others to say so. (These percentages are based on only those officers who offered a rating.)

About half or more officers say police have positive relations with the racial, ethnic groups in their communities

An overwhelming majority of police officers (86%) said in 2016 that high-profile fatal encounters between black people and police officers had made their jobs harder . Sizable majorities also said such incidents had made their colleagues more worried about safety (93%), heightened tensions between police and blacks (75%), and left many officers reluctant to use force when appropriate (76%) or to question people who seemed suspicious (72%).

Officers say fatal encounters between police and blacks have made policing harder

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19 June 2020
Update 26 May 2021

What the data say about police brutality and racial bias — and which reforms might work

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For 9 minutes and 29 seconds, Derek Chauvin pressed his knee into the neck of George Floyd, an unarmed Black man. This deadly use of force by the now-former Minneapolis police officer has reinvigorated a very public debate about police brutality and racism.

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Update 26 May 2021 : On 20 April 2021, Derek Chauvin was convicted of causing the death of George Floyd. The text has been modified to include updated information on how long Chauvin knelt on Floyd’s neck.

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IMAGES

Corruption
50 Shocking Statistics on Police Corruption You Must Know
Essay Summary of Police Corruption (500 Words)
Perceptions of public sector corruption and police misconduct in
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🌈 Corruption in law enforcement essay. Police Corruption In Law

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Exposing Police Abuse: Your Guide to Protecting Your Rights

COMMENTS

criminal justice ethics quiz 4 Flashcards
Research on abuse and corruption complains finds that: 1) these are widespread problems. 2) these activities are disproportionally engaged in by a small number of officers. 3) these problems are more prevalent now than ever in the past. 4) these issues are particularly a problem in the northeast.
The Network Structure of Police Misconduct
with fewer complaints, fewer instances of abuse and miscon-duct, and less racial profiling (Cao, Deng, and Barton 2000; Nicholson-Crotty, Nicholson-Crotty, and Fernandez 2017). The extent of police diversity may even impact police-involved shooting. Legewie and Fagan (2017) find fewer police shootings of black civilians in departments with a
The Network Structure of Police Misconduct
This study recreates these networks using data on 16,503 complaints and 15,811 police officers over a six-year period in Chicago. ... Other research finds either no difference between black and nonblack officers ... Police culture is commonly associated with patterns of police abuse and misconduct. Research suggests that police culture is ...
Preventing police misconduct
In 2005, police misconduct in New Orleans had reached an all-time high. In the weeks before and after Hurricane Katrina, several high-profile beatings and unjustified shootings by police led to intense federal scrutiny of the New Orleans Police Department (NOPD), including a 2010 U.S. Department of Justice investigation and a 2013 federal consent decree to overhaul policies and promote greater ...
Study finds misconduct spreads among police officers like contagion
To construct an effective timeline of officers' actions, behavioral economists Edika Quispe-Torreblanca and Neil Stewart leveraged four years of records from the London Metropolitan Police ...
Majority of Public Favors Giving Civilians the Power to Sue Police
The survey finds that Americans overwhelmingly favor requiring police to be trained in nonviolent alternatives to deadly force; 92% support this proposal, including 71% who strongly favor it. Several other policing proposals draw broad support as well: 90% of the public favors a federal government database to track officers accused of misconduct.
Police Attitudes Toward Abuse of Authority: Findings From a National
The survey contacted 925 randomly selected officers from 121 departments. The majority of officers believed that: (1) It is unacceptable to use more force than legally allowable to control someone who physically assaults an officer; (2) Extreme cases of police abuse of authority occur infrequently; (3) Their departments take a "tough stand" on the issue of police abuse; (4) At times their ...
Explaining the American crisis of policing: Media, malfeasance, and
In the pooled model, we find a positive and significant correlation between poor police performance evaluations and incidences of police malfeasance. Further, substantive increases in the probability of rating police performance as poor are correlated with all respondents when disaggregated by race.
PDF Curbing Police Brutality: What Works? A Reanalysis of Citizen
complaints against police use of excessive force. The current report includes two empirical studies on the citizen complaints about police brutality in two mutually excluding areas: the police use of excessive physical force and the police use of all other non-physical forces, such as abuse of authority and verbal abuse. It attempts to establish
Police Corruption
Recommendations for future research suggested in the literature review include determining definitions used by police bureaucracies, both formal/informal and stated/implied; determining attitudes/policies toward acceptance of gratuities; carrying out a study expressly designed for field observation of the extent and form of corrupt activities ...
A Study of Police Misconduct and Litigation: Findings and Implications
Police officers are entrusted with the delicate task of applying force with reasonable care. In situations where police misuse their power of force, complaints of misconduct frequently arise. There is a wealth of information on civil litigation but a lack of data concerning the conditions accompanying alleged incidents of police misconduct.
PDF Office of Justice Programs National Institute of Justice
More than 25 percent of officers surveyed in the Illinois study and 15 percent of those in the Ohio study stated that they had observed an officer harassing a citi-zen "most likely" because of his or her race. Prior studies such as these provide suggestive findings on police officers' attitudes toward the abuse of authority.
Complaints of police misconduct: Examining the timeliness and outcomes
The analyses demonstrated that the nature of the complaint and number of police officers present on scene were two predictors of the timeliness of complaint investigations. This study also found that police officer and complaint characteristics were relevant predictors of the disposition and discipline outcomes of complaint investigations.
Race and Police Misconduct Cases
Research specifically on race and police misconduct can be organized into three categories highlighting racial differences with regard to: (1) misconduct as measured by civilian complaints and/or internal complaint processes; (2) public perceptions toward and/or attitudes about police misconduct; and.
Causal peer effects in police misconduct
We estimate causal peer effects in police misconduct using data from about 35,000 officers and staff from London's Metropolitan Police Service for the period 2011-2014. We use instrumental ...
Fighting Police Abuse: A Community Action Manual
The year is 1984. Galvanized by a series of brutal and unjustified police killings that have sparked tensions between the police department and the African American community, 19 civil rights, religious, professional and civic organizations form the Indianapolis Law Enforcement/Community Relations Coalition.
Corrupt, brutal and unprofessional? Africa-wide survey of police finds
Perceptions of police misconduct, corruption and brutality are widespread, according to a new survey by Afrobarometer. The independent research network surveyed 39 countries between 2021 and 2023.
Police Violence and Associations With Public Perceptions of the Police
Correlates of Police Violence. Research has shown that Black and Latino/a adults are more likely to experience police violence than white adults (Davis et al., 2018; Edwards et al., 2019; Ross, 2015; Tregle et al., 2019).Gender also plays a key role, as empirical evidence has found that Black and Latino men were more likely than white individuals and women to experience threats or use of ...
Race and policing in America: 10 things we know
How we did this. Most of the findings in this post were drawn from two previous Pew Research Center reports: one on police officers and policing issues published in January 2017, and one on the state of race relations in the United States published in April 2019. We also drew from a September 2016 report on how black and white Americans view police in their communities.
What the data say about police brutality and racial bias
A one-day training programme based on these principles of procedural justice — a model of policing that focuses on respect, neutrality and transparency — was shown to reduce both citizen ...
Who Believes that the Police Use Excessive Force? Centering Racism in
Research generally finds Latinx Americans are significantly more likely than non-Latinx White Americans to believe the police use excessive force, but, reflecting the racial hierarchy described by Peterson and Krivo (2010), generally fall somewhere between the views of White and Black Americans (Buckler and Unnever 2008; Callanan and ...
Research on abuse and corruption complains finds that:__________ a
Research on abuse and corruption complaints finds that these activities are disproportionally engaged in by a small number of officers. Thus, option A is correct. The term "corruption" describes the dishonest conduct of persons in positions of authority, such as managers or elected politicians. Corruption may take many different forms, such as offering or taking bribes or improper gifts ...
Unit Two Chapter Test
T/F :In confrontations between police and citizens, research has shown that factors leading to disrespectful interaction include time of day. True. False. ... Research on abuse and corruption complains finds that: Choose matching definition. Police officers are more likely to be polite to white motorists.

Preventing police misconduct

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Introduction

Race and Policing in the United States

Defining and Understanding Police Misconduct

Race and Police Misconduct

Race and Misconduct Complaints and Complaint Processes

Race and Public Perceptions of Police Misconduct

Race, Police Officer Perceptions, and Police Misconduct

Theoretical Explanations for the Persistence of Racial Disparities in Policing

Reactive Measures and Preventive Solutions

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