Police have been the subject of increased scrutiny over the past several years, and there exists a contention that this increased scrutiny impacted officer behavior, resulting in diminished proactive policing as officers may be performing their duties less vigorously. The study examines the effect that changes in scrutiny, as measured in terms of public interest and local news coverage, had upon police officer vigor, as measured by monthly counts of pedestrian and vehicle stops. This research is unique in that it examines the effects of scrutiny emanating from local incidents separately from that related to high profile incidents that received considerable nationwide interest; the extant research is currently limited to the latter. A series of fixed-effects negative binomial regression models examine the impact of scrutiny upon vigor over time throughout all neighborhoods in the city of Philadelphia. The study finds that local and national scrutiny do not have the same impact upon officer vigor, as scrutiny emanating from national incidents generally results in increases in officer vigor, while scrutiny emanating from local incidents results in an increase in ped stops in the first month following the scrutiny, and then a subsequent decrease in both forms of vigor in the second month. This study of police officer decision-making across space and time has both theoretical and practical implications. / Criminal Justice

The Ferguson effect is a recent hypothesis that suggests police officers have been influenced by negative media coverage of police conduct. The problem this study addressed is how policing continues to deal with perception, civil liability, and accountability issues related to police misconduct when interacting with Latino and African-American communities. The research was conducted to examine influence the Ferguson effect may have had on the culture and perceptions of police officers in local police departments. With a phenomenological qualitative approach, the research data were collected from interviews with 7 police officers across 3 police departments. The theoretical background of Merton's theory of unintended consequences offered insights into how law enforcement functions and the kinds of policies that affect police-civilian relations. Data was analyzed with NVivo 12 data analysis software. Four predominant themes emerged: (1) commitment to service, (2) police officers' perception of the media, (3) impact of the Ferguson Effect, and (4) attitudes toward civil liability. The research indicates that the officers shared a strong commitment to service as well as being satisfied overall with the police department where they work. In addition, the participants acknowledged the Ferguson effect but did not believe it prevented them from performing their sworn duties. With this research study, the police officers' voices can be added to the national debate regarding the Ferguson effect and their perception of its impact on their culture in local police departments, community engagement with minority citizens, and civil liability.

Recent negatively publicized police-citizen interactions in the media, followed by a subsequent rise in crime rates in the United States, has been named the Ferguson Effect. The Ferguson Effect has been explored by prominent scholars in the criminal justice community; however, little is known about how police officers in small police agencies perceive the Ferguson Effect. The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to explore the perceptions and lived experiences of police officers regarding the Ferguson Effect in small police agencies, as well as police officers' perceptions of their own organizational justice. The theoretical framework for this study was Greenberg's theory of organizational justice. Research questions focused on exploring police officers' perceptions, attitudes, and experiences of the Ferguson Effect phenomenon and willingness to partner with the community. A qualitative phenomenological study design was employed, using purposeful random sampling and semistructured interviews of 9 active sworn law enforcement personnel in southcentral Virginia. Data were analyzed through In Vivo coding, pattern coding, and structural analysis utilizing NVivo 11 Pro. Themes included: (a) racial division, (b) rush to judgment, and (c) steadfast leadership. Findings indicated participants demanded clear and fair policies and procedures from leadership, increased effort of transparency in policing, feelings of racial tension, and the need to regain community trust post-Ferguson. Implications for social change include refinement and development of leadership training for police leadership and refinement in organizational policies that support fairness, community engagement, and community interaction.

Several questionable officer involved shootings and perceived abuses of authority disproportionately involving minority citizens have resulted in public outcry, protests, and nationwide scrutiny of police in recent years. The resulting police legitimacy crisis has prompted agencies to rapidly equip officers with body-worn video cameras (BWCs). BWC advocates lauded the findings of an early study that attributed significant reductions in use of force incidents and citizen complaints to the devices and it is this and a handful of other short-term studies upon which the claims of these benefits are predicated. However, subsequent research has produced mixed findings and the sustainability of any reductions remains questionable. The limited knowledge concerning the impact of BWCs on the aforementioned outcomes is problematic considering the potential negative impact of unrealistic expectations and the expense of BWC program maintenance. The objective of this dissertation is to address gaps in the extant research by exploring the impact of an incremental deployment of the devices on the frequency and severity of use of force incidents and the frequency and outcome of citizen complaints while controlling for staffing, volume of officer-initiated enforcement contacts, and the Ferguson incident. Utilizing 86-months of secondary data collected from the Newport News, Virginia Police Department (NNPD) a vector autoregressive multivariate time series analysis indicates that BWCs were a significant factor in a substantial sustained reduction in use of force and a substantial sustained increase in exonerated complaint dispositions at the NNPD.

In 1994 Congress enacted the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act, which in part gave the Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division (DOJCRD) the power to investigate local law enforcement agencies for Constitutional and civil rights violations. Researchers have found these investigations are expensive, time consuming, and highly intrusive to a law enforcement agency. To understand how these investigations are impacting communities, data were gathered on cities with local law enforcement agencies that have experienced an investigation by the DOJCRD. Using a quasi-experimental, multiple time-series research design with a paired samples t-test, the dependent variables (violent crime and arrest rates) were analyzed for any differences before and after the introduction of the independent variable (the commencement of a DOJCRD investigation). With an established a = .05, adjusting for non-reported crime, and comparing to a non-equivalent control variable (national crime rate), the research findings indicate increased violent crime with the commencement of these investigations. The results also show that arrest rates significantly decreased indicating the possibility of de-policing. The negative impact to communities with increased violent crime rates and decreased arrest rates calls into question the efficacy of DOJCRD investigations. By supporting the recommendation for Congress to repeal this power given to the DOJCRD, this research can lead to positive social change by preventing federal government intrusion into local government that is negatively impacting communities.