"Whose help is on the way?": The importance of individual police officers in law enforcement outcomes.
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ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Weisburst EK
PROVIDER: S-EPMC11323075 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Jul
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
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"Whose help is on the way?": The importance of individual police officers in law enforcement outcomes.
The Journal of human resources 20240701 4
Police discretion has large potential consequences for public trust and safety; however, little is known about the extent of this discretion. I show that arrests critically depend on which officer responds to a 911 call; 1 standard deviation increase in officer arrest propensity raises arrest likelihood by 40%. High arrest officers are more likely to be white and have less experience. I find mixed evidence that arrest propensity is related to arrest quality. High arrest officers use force more o ...[more]
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Project description:ObjectiveTo assess the association between risk of sudden cardiac death and stressful law enforcement duties compared with routine/non-emergency duties.DesignCase distribution study (case series with survey information on referent exposures).SettingUnited States law enforcement.ParticipantsSummaries of deaths of over 4500 US police officers provided by the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund and the Officer Down Memorial Page from 1984 to 2010.Main outcome measuresObserved and expected sudden cardiac death counts and relative risks for sudden cardiac death events during specific strenuous duties versus routine/non-emergency activities. Independent estimates of the proportion of time that police officers spend across various law enforcement duties obtained from surveys of police chiefs and front line officers. Impact of varying exposure assessments, covariates, and missing cases in sensitivity and stability analyses.Results441 sudden cardiac deaths were observed during the study period. Sudden cardiac death was associated with restraints/altercations (25%, n=108), physical training (20%, n=88), pursuits of suspects (12%, n=53), medical/rescue operations (8%, n=34), routine duties (23%, n=101), and other activities (11%, n=57). Compared with routine/non-emergency activities, the risk of sudden cardiac death was 34-69 times higher during restraints/altercations, 32-51 times higher during pursuits, 20-23 times higher during physical training, and 6-9 times higher during medical/rescue operations. Results were robust to all sensitivity and stability analyses.ConclusionsStressful law enforcement duties are associated with a risk of sudden cardiac death that is markedly higher than the risk during routine/non-emergency duties. Restraints/altercations and pursuits are associated with the greatest risk. Our findings have public health implications and suggest that primary and secondary cardiovascular prevention efforts are needed among law enforcement officers.
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Project description:Compare arterial stiffness among law enforcement officers (LEOs) versus general population normative values and identify predictors of arterial stiffness in LEOs. Seventy male LEOs (age: 24-54 years) completed body composition, blood pressures, physical activity level, and carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (cfPWV) measurements. T-tests and regression analyses were utilized to compare LEO data to normative data and predict cfPWV, respectively. Compared to similar age strata within the general population, cfPWV was lower among LEO's under 30-years (mean difference = -0.6 m·s-1), but higher among LEOs 50-55-years (mean difference = 1.1 m·s-1). Utilizing regression, age, relative body fat, and diastolic blood pressure explained the greatest variance in LEO's cfPWV (adj. R2 = 0.56, p < 0.001). This investigation demonstrated that arterial stiffness may progress more rapidly in LEOs and LEOs' relative body fat and blood pressure may primarily affect arterial stiffness and risk of CVD.
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Project description:BackgroundLaw enforcement officers (LEOs) are exposed to chronic stress throughout the course of their shift, which increases the risk of adverse events. Although there have been studies targeting LEO safety through enhanced training or expanded equipment provisions, there has been little attempt to leverage personal technology in the field to provide real-time notification of LEO stress. This study tests the acceptability of implementing of a brief, smart watch intervention to alleviate stress among LEOs.MethodsWe assigned smart watches to 22 patrol LEOs across two police departments: one suburban department and one large, urban department. At baseline, we measured participants' resting heart rates (RHR), activated their watches, and educated them on brief wellness interventions in the field. LEOs were instructed to wear the watch during the entirety of their shift for 30 calendar days. When LEO's heart rate or stress continuum reached the predetermined threshold for more than 10 min, the watch notified LEOs, in real time, of two stress reduction interventions: [1] a 1-min, guided breathing exercise; and [2] A Calm app, which provided a mix of guided meditations and mindfulness exercises for LEOs needing a longer decompression period. After the study period, participants were invited for semi-structured interviews to elucidate intervention components. Qualitative data were analyzed using an immersion-crystallization approach.ResultsLEOs reported three particularly useful intervention components: 1) a vibration notification when hearts rates remained high, although receipt of a notification was highly variable; 2) visualization of their heart rate and stress continuum in real time; and, 3) breathing exercises. The most frequently reported type of call for service when the watch vibrated was when a weapon was involved or when a LEO was in pursuit of a murder suspect/hostage. LEOs also recollected that their watch vibrated while reading dispatch notes or while on their way to work.ConclusionsA smart watch can deliver access to brief wellness interventions in the field in a manner that is both feasible and acceptable to LEOs.
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Project description:Law enforcement officers frequently encounter people with health conditions. We sought to estimate the rates, diagnoses, and characteristics of emergency department (ED) visits among patients transported directly by law enforcement. We analyzed statewide North Carolina Emergency Department data for adults, aged 18+ years, from 2009 to 2016. We estimated transport rates using census data; categorized primary ED diagnoses into 13 major and 8 substituent categories; compared county transport rates by rurality; and examined patient characteristics. There were 136,240 patients transported by law enforcement; annual rates increased from 186.9 (per 100,000 adult residents) in 2009 to 279.2 in 2016. Among visits, 67.7% were among men, the median age was 37 years, and 20.4% resulted in a hospital admission. Most common primary diagnoses were Mental Health Diagnoses (43.1%)-including Schizophrenia and other Psychotic Disorders (7.6%), Mood Disorders (9.7%), and Alcohol and Substance Use (10.7%)-followed by Injury and Poisoning (12.4%) and Circulatory conditions (4.1%). Involuntary commitments constituted 22% of all visits. The median transport rate in rural counties, 291.1, was 2 times that of large metro counties, 145.1. The visit rate increased by nearly 50% during the study period, with the highest rates in rural counties. Many transports were for Mental Illness and involuntary commitments. The relatively common occurrence of law enforcement transports suggests the need for greater research to understand factors influencing law enforcement transport decisions, the impact of these transports on patient health and safety, and the repercussions on patient care of a growing officer presence in EDs.
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Project description:BackgroundTraining law enforcement officers (LEOs) to administer naloxone is a recommended strategy to reduce overdose deaths in the United States. To achieve this, an evidence-based and scalable naloxone training curriculum that is easy to use and readily scalable is needed. Convenient web-based training is a flexible method for delivering educational interventions particularly for LEOs who have irregular or shifting schedules. This study examined the effectiveness of a comprehensive web-based naloxone training that was created in partnership with LEOs on their knowledge, confidence, and attitudes regarding naloxone.MethodsFrom May 2019 to September 2020, five law enforcement departments from Michigan participated in web-based naloxone training. A total of 182 LEOs (77% male) were in the final sample based on matching pre-and post-test surveys. LEOs were assessed on knowledge, confidence, and attitudes towards naloxone. Negative binomial and Poisson regression was conducted to assess associations between knowledge, confidence, and attitudes towards naloxone before and after training.ResultsSignificant improvements in overdose knowledge and confidence were revealed across all departments with median (IQR) total composite scores for knowledge increasing from 35 (32, 37) to 40 (39, 42) (p < 0.01) and confidence increasing from 18.5 (15, 20) to 20 (20, 25) (p < 0.01). Median (IQR) attitude scores did not change.ConclusionOur web-based naloxone training was effective in improving knowledge and confidence for LEOs but did not significantly improve LEOs attitudes towards naloxone across most departments. The web-based format is readily scalable and quickly disseminated and meets the immediate need for LEO overdose training. Additional intervention is needed to address the negative attitudes of LEOs regarding naloxone.
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Project description:Law enforcement officers (LEOs) are at increased risk for sleep disorders relative to the general population. Common LEO occupational stressors, including critical incidents and shift work, predict sleep disturbance, which in turn negatively impacts health, performance, and community safety. The Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System-Sleep Disturbance 4-item (PROMIS SD4) was developed to assess self-reported sleep quality, satisfaction, and difficulties falling asleep. Previous studies suggest PROMIS-SD short-forms (4-, 6-, and 8-item) have good psychometric properties; however, evaluation of this easily-administered measure in high-stress, frontline populations is limited. The primary goal of this study was to evaluate the validity and reliability of the PROMIS-SD4 in a sample of LEOs (N = 111). A confirmatory factor analysis suggests that the original one-factor solution, with a correlated error-term, provides an excellent fit to the data, SBχ2(2) = 1.62, p = .23, CFI = .99, RMSEA = .12, SRMR = .01. The PROMIS SD4 demonstrated good reliability (α = .85) and evidence of convergent validity correlations in the expected direction with domains of psychological distress, positive health outcomes, reactivity, and body experience (all p's < .05). Results suggest that the PROMIS-SD4 is a valid and reliable measure of sleep disturbance among LEOs.
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Project description:Mounting evidence suggests that law enforcement organizational factors contribute to higher incidence and racial disparities in police killings. To determine whether agency policies contribute to race-specific civilian fatalities, this exploratory study compared fatality rates among agencies with and without selected policies expected to reduce killings. A cross-section of 1085 fatalities in the 2015-2016 The Counted public-use database were matched to 481 agencies in the 2013 Law Enforcement Management and Administrative Statistics (LEMAS) database. Negative binomial regression estimated incidence rate ratios (IRR) adjusted for agency type, number of officers, percent female personnel, median income, percent with a bachelor's degree, violent crime rate, and population size, with inference using robust standard errors. Agencies with greater proportions of full-time personnel (range 43-100%) had lower rates of all (IRR = 0.85; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.77-0.93) and non-White civilian killings (IRR = 0.85; CI = 0.73-0.99). Mission statements predicted lower rates of all (IRR = 0.70; CI = 0.58-0.84) and White killings (IRR = 0.60; CI = 0.40-0.90). Community evaluation and more types of personnel incentives predicted lower rates of White (IRR = 0.82; CI = 0.68-0.99) and non-White killings (IRR = 0.94; CI = 0.89-1.00), respectively. Increasing video use predicted higher rates of White killings (IRR = 1.13; CI = 1.01-1.28). No policies were significantly associated with Black civilian killings. Law enforcement policies that help reduce police killings may vary across racial groups with the least benefit for Black civilians. Impact evaluations and meta-analyses of initiatives aimed to mitigate fatalities should be explored, particularly policies to address anti-Black bias. A national registry tracking all police killings and agency policies is urgently needed to inform law enforcement policies aimed to mitigate civilian fatalities.
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Project description:BackgroundPolice violence is increasingly recognized as an urgent public health problem. Basic questions about police violence, however, remain unanswered, including which types of law enforcement agency are responsible for fatal police violence deaths.MethodsWe estimated the proportion of police violence deaths in the U.S. (2013-2022) that were attributable to local, county, state, federal, or tribal police agencies, using mapping police violence data. We examined proportions overall, by decedent race/ethnicity, and by state.ResultsNationally, 60% of decedents were killed by municipal, 29% by county, 8% by state, and 3% by federal, police, with < 1% killed by tribal or other officers. These proportions varied by race/ethnicity, with 56% of Native American decedents killed by municipal police compared to 70-75% among other racially minoritized people. While municipal police were responsible for most deaths in most states, in the Southeast, county police predominated. In some Northeastern states (and Alaska), state police were responsible for > 40% of deaths.ConclusionsWe identify wide geographic & racial/ethnic variation in the agencies responsible for fatal police violence. Findings suggest that the budgetary and infrastructural shifts required to prevent fatal police violence need to occur at multiple levels of government.
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