Black Lives Matter: Race, Policing, and Protest

Using a simple videogame, the effect of ethnicity on shoot/don’t shoot decisions was examined. African American or White targets, holding guns or other objects, appeared in complex backgrounds. Participants
were told to “shoot” armed targets and to “not shoot” unarmed targets. In Study 1, White participants made the correct decision to shoot an armed target more quickly if the target was African American than if he was White, but decided to “not shoot” an unarmed target more quickly if he was White. Study 2 used a shorter time window, forcing this effect into error rates. Study 3 replicated Study 1’s effects and showed that the magnitude of bias varied with perceptions of the cultural stereotype and with levels of contact, but not with personal racial prejudice. Study 4 revealed equivalent levels of bias among both African American and White participants in a community sample. Implications and potential underlying mechanisms are discussed

This essay seeks to clarify conceptually the common structure uniting many of the incidents in the recent crescendo of police killings of people of color, going beyond their shared racist framework. In tandem with the "new Jim Crow" that Michelle Alexander describes, these killings pertain to the role of the police as the selection mechanism enforcing a new color line. The author focuses on the killings of Oscar Grant, Alan Blueford, Trayvon Martin, and Troy Davis. When connected by their common threads, these killings reveal aspects of the cultural structure of racialization in the United States. The essay concludes by looking at the politicolegal goal of this epidemic of killings.

Police use-of-force continues to be a major source of international concern, inviting interest from academics and practitioners alike. Whether justified or unnecessary/excessive, the exercise of power by the police can potentially tarnish their relationship with the community. Police misconduct can translate into complaints against the police, which carry large economic and social costs. The question we try to answer is: do body-worn-cameras reduce the prevalence of use-of-force and/or citizens' complaints against the police?

Purpose - This study aims to examine the relationship between officer characteristics, productivity levels, situational context, the complaint process and allegations of police misconduct in a Midwestern municipal police agency. Design/methodology/approach - Data were collected for all formal and informal complaints filed against patrol officers from 2002-2005. Demographic information, arrest, citation and report data, as well as data regarding the number of officers on scene during the police citizen contact that resulted in the complaint were utilized in these analyses. Findings - The analyses in this study demonstrate that more aggressive officers - those who issue a greater number of citations - will generate a greater number of complaints of misconduct. Two variables explain the processing of formal complaints: number of officers present and the nature of the complaint. Further, the analyses indicate that informal complaints are a viable source of data and that the collection and archival of informal complaints can be a useful indicator for internal control of police misconduct. Practical implications - The findings indicate that police departments must employ internal mechanisms, such as early warning systems to deal with police misconduct. Internal monitoring of police conduct may be the best way to detect misconduct as relying solely on citizen complaints as measures of police misconduct does not appear to be warranted. Originality/value - This paper adds to the literature on complaints of police misconduct by including several variables not previously examined. Further, this study analyzes both formal and informal complaints; there are no other studies that examine informal complaints of misconduct. This study also investigates the complaint process, including frequency, nature, disposition and discipline administered following disposition of formal complaints.