Police violence and killings can decrease community trust in law enforcement. In new research, Kelsey Shoub and Cody Drolc find that police killings can also affect the likelihood that members of the public will reach out for assistance from their local government when they need it. Using survey research, they find that in communities affected by police killings, there is a noticeable decline in non-emergency interactions with local government, suggesting a broader loss of trust in local institutions beyond the police.

When the police sirens fade following a police involved death, communities may go quiet – at least to their local government and to their police departments. Even one police involved death can ripple through a community, leaving a wake of disengagement and distrust not just in law enforcement, but across local government more broadly.

Recent studies have offered insights into how close and personal or direct interactions with law enforcement can influence civic behaviors. Others have highlighted how community contact, such as learning about a local police killing, relates to voting. Yet, the potential ripple effects of police killings on community engagement with broader local government functions is less understood.

Police killings and government contact

Why might police killings affect the likelihood members of the public reach out to the police or even to local government more generally? 

How the public interacts with and orients themselves towards government does not happen in a vacuum. Policies and the actions of public officials like the police officers tasked with carrying them out send powerful signals to the public about their worth relative to the state. Negative events, such as police killings, challenge perceptions of legitimacy and can signal that some members of a community do not belong. The public can then transfer these negative lessons from police interactions to other local government entities, viewing them as part of a broader system. As such, police killings can decrease the likelihood community members will call 911 when they need help and may further decrease contact with other branches of local government, such as submitting a 311-service request by phone.

Prior research, which examines one city at a time in isolation, has produced conflicting findings, with some studies finding that police killings depress citizen-initiated contact, while others find that there is no impact on citizen-initiated contact with local government.

In a recent study, we investigated this puzzle further, asking whether police killings affect the likelihood of members of the public reaching out for assistance when they need it. To answer this question, we sought to triangulate evidence through two studies.

One, like prior studies, turned to administrative data from a single city: Los Angeles. Using the Los Angeles Times database on police homicides in conjunction with publicly available 911 and 311 records from 2016 through 2020, we estimate, through our analysis, the impact of police killings in Los Angeles.

Our second study uses a survey experiment that we designed and fielded in late March and early April 2022 with the Lucid survey platform. Unlike in our first study where all information came from a single city, here respondents came from across the country, allowing us to address concerns that accompany generalizing from a focus on a single city. In that survey, respondents were randomly shown one of four short vignettes that mimic news stories. Then they were given two statements and asked who they would reach out to in each instance, as well as a more general inquiry about their perceptions of the associated local government.

“Stop Police Crimes” (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0) by risingthermals

Police killings are linked to a decline in interactions with local government

Both studies reveal a complex picture. In communities affected by police killings, there is a noticeable decline in non-emergency interactions with local government, such as 311 requests, which suggests a broader loss of trust in local institutions beyond just the police. This indicates a broader impact of police killings, such that there is a ripple effect beyond a direct reduction in police-community interactions to a more generalized withdrawal from civic engagement with local government.

However, we only find weak support for the idea that those in communities that have recently experienced a police killing will be less likely to reach out to the police, such as through 911 requests. Interestingly, we find no relationship in Los Angeles, likely potentially because the public already reach out to the LAPD only when there are no other options given the rocky history between the LAPD and the city. Put another way, we find a “floor effect.” In contrast, we saw respondents from our survey experiment – who come from across the country and are less likely to be subject to a “floor effect” – reporting that they would be less likely to reach out to the police.

Our study highlights the critical need for an integrated understanding of how law enforcement actions resonate through communities, affecting not only direct interactions with the police but also other areas of local government. 

The implications are stark for public administrators and policymakers. The erosion of civic engagement following police killings can undermine the effectiveness of public service delivery and governance. This calls for a holistic approach to policing and community relations that acknowledges the diffuse impact police violence can have on local communities.

• This article is based on the paper, ‘The particular and diffuse effects of negative interactions on participation: Evidence from responses to police killings’ in Policy Studies Journal. 
• Please read our comments policy before commenting. 
• Note: This article gives the views of the author, and not the position of USAPP – American Politics and Policy, nor the London School of Economics. 
• Shortened URL for this post: https://wp.me/p3I2YF-dYQ