The Impact of Higher Education on Police Officer Attitudes Regarding Abuse of Authority

This study examines whether officers who receive a college education (four-year degree) prior to entry into the police service have attitudes that are less supportive of the abuse of police authority. This research also explores whether level of higher education and the timing of degree completion alter this potential attitudinal impact of a bachelor's degree. Using data from a nationally representative survey sample, I find that officers with a pre-service bachelor's degree hold attitudes that are less supportive of abuse of authority. These effects remain regardless of when officers receive their degree and across varying levels of higher education (i.e. associate's degree, attending some college). Postsecondary education does not have a statistically significant impact on officer ratings of the seriousness of hypothetical abuse of authority scenarios. These findings suggest that higher education has some beneficial impacts for policing, although these benefits are not only associated with completing a four-year degree

Going Beyond the Blue: The Utility of Emergency Medical Services Data in Understanding Violent Crime

National victimization data suggest less than 50% of violent crime incidents are reported to the police. Official reports of crime to police, however, are often the only type of data used for the analysis of violence problems, the identification of geographic concentrations of violent crime, and the selection of targets for police and prevention resources. Yet, the question remains, are estimates of violent crime prevalence and location distorted from a unilateral reliance on police data? Here, we examine whether emergency medical service (EMS) data collected by the fire department are spatially concentrated in the same way as police data and whether these data can help identify instances of violence unreported to police in the city of Seattle between 2009 and 2011. We find high levels of concentration in both police and EMS data and evidence that new information is learned about the location of violence problems from utilizing multiple data sources. Overall, these findings contribute to a small but growing body of work that demonstrates the utility of nonconventional data in the identification of crime and harm concentrations of interest

Police and the Microgeography of Crime: Scientific Evaluations on the Effectiveness of Hot Spots and Places

El informe señala que el énfasis de la vigilancia policial debería centrarse en unidades geográficas de análisis muy pequeñas, tales como segmentos de calles o pequeños grupos de manzanas. La delincuencia en un determinado lugar no es simplemente un sucedáneo de los efectos de zonas o comunidades más grandes; en realidad, la evidencia de la investigación básica sugiere que gran parte de las acciones de la delincuencia se producen en unidades geográficas muy pequeñas. Esta investigación se apoya en un sólido cuerpo de evidencia experimental sobre la efectividad de ejercer vigilancia sobre el lugar para reducir la incidencia de delitos y disturbios sin sencillamente desplazar la delincuencia a zonas vecinas. También, se sostiene que la percepción de la legitimidad de la policía debería ser parte fundamental de los programas de vigilancia de lugares.

Capitalizing On Patrol Intelligence: Practitioner Receptivity To Patrol-Driven Intelligence-Led Policing

Intelligence-led policing (ILP) approaches seek to utilize a variety of strategies capitalizing on intelligence and analysis to reduce, address, and prevent crime or harm. Often, the application of these strategies involves a top-down approach. An exception to this is the Phoenix Police Department’s patrol-driven Intelligence Officer Program (IOP). This article examines the extent to which personnel from the department are receptive to this specific patrol-driven ILP approach. More specifically, responses from surveys of patrol officers, intelligence officers, and their supervisors are used to explore the perceived value of the program to patrol activities and the patrol function more broadly. Results suggest that stakeholders seem to be enthusiastic about the IOP. Importantly, it is demonstrated that more familiarity and engagement with programs can encourage greater receptivity to policing innovations such as patrol-driven ILP programs. Potential avenues for research are also discussed