Since Tyre Nichols’ death there are renewed calls for Congress to pass police reform legislation. But the federal government has almost no control over state and local police departments.
Seattle police officers deploy pepper spray as they clash with protesters in Seattle, Washington, on July 25, 2020.
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New research confirms that unfair police treatment is psychologically damaging and that the consequences are decidedly worse for certain racial and ethnic groups.
A Los Angeles County police graduation ceremony, Aug. 21, 2020 in Monterey Park, Calif.
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Police are sworn to protect the public, but cadets are still trained for battle – not public service – according to a new study examining all 50 US state police academy curricula.
Getting police and community on board with reforms is crucial for success.
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Attempts to reform US police departments fail when they are unable to get community support. Perhaps it is time to take a different tack, argue two criminal justice scholars – one a former cop.
People cheer after a guilty verdict was announced at the trial of former Minneapolis police Officer Derek Chauvin for the 2020 death of George Floyd.
(AP Photo/Morry Gash)
In the wake of the conviction of the police officer who killed George Floyd, recent court decisions against what’s known as “qualified immunity” are promising.
The story of Nigeria’s #EndSARS movement shows just how durable law enforcement institutions are – and why the road to reform goes straight uphill.
Thousands of people protest to defund the police in support of Black Lives Matter and all social injustice against racism in Toronto on June 19, 2020.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette
Amidst calls to defund the police, political leaders are increasing police budgets, arguing — incorrectly — that increasing police surveillance capacities will help provide accountability.
Research shows that arrests for serious crimes are quite rare.
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When police arrest a suspect who is then convicted of the crime, it is a rare exception rather than the rule in the US.
A police tactical team in Ferguson, Mo., responds to 2014 protests against a white officer’s killing of Michael Brown, a young Black man.
AP Photo/Jeff Roberson
A decadeslong process of recruiting a more diverse police force has led to more peaceful communities and widespread, bipartisan trust in policing in Northern Ireland.
Police in Tulsa, Okla., march toward a crowd of demonstrators on June 20, 2020.
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Scholars who study policing explain what they have found that could help reduce police prejudice and violence.
Protesters in front of Boston Police Headquarters during a United Against Racist Police Terror Rally on June 7, 2020.
Matthew J. Lee/The Boston Globe via Getty Images
Across the United States, police are shielded from both public and departmental accountability by multiple layers of contractual and legislative protections.
Police forces have a wide range of options for monitoring individuals and crowds.
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Police forces across the country now have access to surveillance technologies that were recently available only to national intelligence services. The digitization of bias and abuse of power followed.
Protesters march on June 6, 2020, in New York. Demonstrations continue across the United States in protest of racism and police brutality, sparked by the May 25 death of George Floyd in police custody in Minneapolis.
(AP Photo/Ragan Clark)
Research on excessive use of force by police and the sociological context and psychological characteristics of killer cops point to useful policy measures.