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Abstract
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Although the issue of violent confrontations between police officers and civilians has long been considered an important one, most of the research on the topic has been descriptive. Toch has convincingly argued that violent confrontations between police officers and civilians are not simply situationally caused. Both the police officer and the civilian typically bring to the violent confrontation a pattern of behavior that indicates the potential for such violence. But can we accurately predict which police officers will be involved in such violent confrontations? Or, at a more macroscopic level of analysis, can we predict which police departments or which geographical areas of the country will have the highest rates for violence?
This study was conducted to identify correlates of the murder rate of police officers by civilians in the 48 continental states.
Variables selected from a number of sources for inclusion in the study included the following: Police-caused homicides 1961-1970, welfare patrons per unit population 1973, presence of riots and civil disorders 1967, miles of primary highway per state police officer, motor vehicle registrations per state police officer, crime index rate, violent crime rate, property crime rate, murder and nonnegligent manslaughter rate, forcible rape rate, robbery rate, aggravated assault rate, burglary rate, larceny-theft rate, percent of criminal justice expenditures for police protection 1973, full-time employees in police protection 1973, population of the 48 states 1973, population per square mile 1975, percent black 1970, unemployment rate 1972 and 1974, percent voting for nixon 1972, suicide rate 1973, longitude and latitude of the united states, and law enforcement officers killed 1970-1975. The murder rate of police officers by civilians was computed for each state for the periods 1970-1972 and 1973-1975. The murder rate fluctuated widely from year to year. A rate was therefore computed for the period 1970-1975 in the hope that a 6-year period would provide a more stable estimate of the murder rate. A number of variables correlated significantly with the murder rate of police officers. Two major correlates stand out: (1) violent crime varies consistently across states, and states with high murder rates in general also have rates of police-caused homicides of civilians and civilian-caused homicides of police; and (2) a subculture of violence exists in the southern states. The implications of the study findings from a geographical standpoint are discussed. References and supporting data are provided.
Language: en |