Citation

Schafer JA, Mastrofski SD. J. Crim. Justice 2005; 33(3): 225-238.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2005, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.jcrimjus.2005.02.003

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Despite the volume of time officers spend on traffic enforcement encounters, there was limited research exploring how they used their discretion in such interactions. Issues relating to police decision making patterns in the enforcement of motor vehicle laws were particularly salient in light of the on-going debate over racial profiling. This study examined how officers made decisions (in particular, to stop and to sanction) in the course of traffic enforcement. Using field observations and interviews with officers in a small midwestern agency, the authors described the factors and forces that officers used in making discretionary choices. The findings indicated that leniency in sanctioning was very common and that officers expected citizens to be contrite and acknowledge responsibility for their infractions. Implications for larger and more systematic observational studies are discussed.