American Policing Under Fire: Misconduct and Reform

Abstract

A cluster of recent police killings of African American men has sparked an unprecedented amount of public debate regarding policing in the United States. Critics and protesters have made sweeping allegations about the police; a presidential commission has been formed to study police misconduct; and reforms are being debated. These events provide a backdrop for this article's review of recent poll data and discussion of research regarding police relations with African Americans, Latinos, and whites.

Expanding the Scope of Evidence‐Based Policing

“…This broader focus of the Task Force () also seems to be in line with recent concerns raised by the media and the general public (Weitzer, ). This is not to suggest that the public is unconcerned about crime control and the police.…”

Examining the Impact of the Freddie Gray Unrest on Perceptions of the Police

“…People's views of the police are formed through socialization with family, friends, and the community, but as individuals have new encounters with the police, as well as vicarious experiences, their perceptions are “updated”—“as an individual comes into contact with new information, they update their prior judgement” (Augustyn, : 259). Weitzer () argued that how an individual is treated during contact with a police officer is a micro‐level process and is only one aspect that influences people's perceptions of law enforcement. Rather, perceptions of the police formed through more macro‐level processes may be grounded in relations between the community and police that have formed over long periods, through multiple direct or vicarious experiences with the police, even generations of overexposure to negative police encounters and mistreatment (Nagin and Telep, ).…”

“…Issues ranging from the use of deadly force by police officers, particularly against minorities; the relationship between de‐policing and increased crime; questions of police legitimacy and procedural justice; and discussions of racial injustice and equal treatment in the criminal justice system more broadly have all been invoked as either explanations for, or potential solutions to, the increased tensions between the police and the public. Based on the events in Baltimore and elsewhere, many commentators have concluded that minority communities are deeply affected by these highly publicized examples of police violence (Weitzer, ). More generally, politicians, the media, and scholars have declared that the United States is experiencing a crisis of police legitimacy as a result of these events (Cook, ; Gest, ; Jones, ; Kochel, ; Mellman, ; Nix and Pickett, ; Weitzer, ; White and Fradella, ; Wolfe and Nix, ).…”

“…Based on the events in Baltimore and elsewhere, many commentators have concluded that minority communities are deeply affected by these highly publicized examples of police violence (Weitzer, ). More generally, politicians, the media, and scholars have declared that the United States is experiencing a crisis of police legitimacy as a result of these events (Cook, ; Gest, ; Jones, ; Kochel, ; Mellman, ; Nix and Pickett, ; Weitzer, ; White and Fradella, ; Wolfe and Nix, ).…”

A Bird's Eye View of Civilians Killed by Police in 2015

“…Policing in America is in the midst of a legitimacy crisis, having faced immense scrutiny in recent years resulting in large part from several highly publicized deadly force incidents captured on video (e.g., most recently, Keith Lamont Scott in Charlotte, NC and Terence Crutcher in Tulsa, OK). These videos have gone “viral” on social media and have led to unprecedented levels of public discontent with the police (Weitzer, ). This discontent has fueled violence toward police officers: in July 2016 in Dallas, for example, a peaceful protest turned deadly when five officers were fatally shot and another nine wounded .…”