Browsing: Training & Recruitment

Commentators argue that African Americans in law enforcement can play a primary role in tackling the historic legacy of police racism. But first they have to get in the door. In interviews with The Crime Report, senior Black officers say police recruitment practices are riddled with both overt and implicit bias.

A recent study showed 10 times as many police officers in a simulation shot a subject after being told by 911 operators to expect a gun, an illustration of the importance 911 call takers play in the outcomes of police calls. Their role has gone largely unexamined in the criminal justice reform debate so far.

Cops who are fired for misconduct are likely to repeat the same offense if they get a second law enforcement job, according to a Yale study. The risks to communities posed by these so-called “wandering officers” could be addressed with a reinforced national database of decertified officers, accompanied by stricter state record-keeping, say the study authors.