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Title: Do Police Maximize Arrests or Minimize Crime? Evidence from Racial Profiling in U.S. Cities

Citation Type: Working Paper

Publication Year: 2018

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ISSN: 1556-5068

DOI: 10.2139/ssrn.3132046

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Abstract: It is difficult to know if racial discrepancies in police stop and search data are caused by taste-based or statistical discrimination. In part, this is due to uncertainty over the benchmark of unbiased police behavior: do officers aim to maximize arrests or to minimize crime? In this paper, I compare models of the two police objectives to data from U.S. cities. The models yield testable predictions for police spending and the difference in arrest rates across race. Empirical evidence is consistent with a model of arrest maximization and inconsistent with a model of crime minimization. These findings support the validity of existing tests for discrimination that rely on the assumption that police maximize arrests.

Url: https://www.ssrn.com/abstract=3132046

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Authors: Stashko, Allison

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Data Collections: IPUMS USA

Topics: Crime and Deviance

Countries: United States