Law Enforcement and Racial Justice

Locate state laws and studies relate to body-warn cameras. Includes: Use Requirements, Funding, Open Records Laws, Eavesdropping Laws, and Written Policy Requirements.

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CRS Insight (IN10537)
July 26, 2016
Author:Nathan James
Provides background on July 7, 2016, Dallas, Tex., shooting in which Micah Johnson killed five officers and wounded seven when he opened fire on law enforcement officers who were observing a protest against police-involved shootings. Discusses Dallas Police Department (DPD) use of a robot to kill Johnson, which has raised questions about what this might mean for how police use force in the future. Provides information on standoff between Johnson and DPD, describes unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) used by DPD to neutralize Johnson, considers potential effect of UGV on law enforcement use of force, and potential regulation of UGVs.

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April 01, 2016, 2 pages.
Examines Supreme Court summary opinion regarding whether a police officer was entitled under current law to qualified immunity from civil liability for the use of force, which killed a driver in a high-speed chase. Describes civil suit brought under Federal civil rights laws pleading that the officer had used excessive force against the driver in violation of his Fourth Amendment right to be free of an unreasonable seizure, and explains district court and U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit refusal to dismiss the case before trial on qualified immunity grounds. Explains Supreme Court decision that the Fourth Amendment right was not clearly established.

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October 30, 2015, 29 pages.
Provides legal context for debate over police use of force in light of several high-profile police shootings and other law enforcement-related deaths. Examines constitutional rules governing use of force by the police, role of Congress in providing a remedy for violation of rules, and legislative proposals to reform these rules and remedies to rein in police use of excessive force and provide accountability.

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October 15, 2015, 2 pages
Examines U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit decision in Trent v. Wade that determined a police officer violated Fourth Amendment rights when he entered a house without first knocking or announcing his presence. Provides overview of Fourth Amendment requirements that officers who seek to enter a house in order to conduct a search or seizure must first knock and announce their purpose, with certain exceptions. Reviews the officer's request that the suit be thrown out on the basis of his qualified immunity for conduct committed in the performance of duty, and explains why qualified immunity was denied.

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CRS Report (R43701)
August 28, 2014
Author: Daniel H. Else
Examines DOD support to law enforcement, highlighting the DOD "1033 Program," established to provide material support to authorized Federal and State law enforcement agencies in the form of transfers of military articles suitable for use in counter-drug and counter-terrorism activities.

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CRS Insight (IN10138)
August 20, 2014
Author: Nathan James & Daniel H. Else
Addresses concerns regarding "militarization" of law enforcement and expanding role of special weapons and tactics (SWAT) teams, in light of recent clashes between police and protesters in Ferguson, MO. Examines possible militarization role of DOD "1033 Program," established to provide material support to authorized Federal and State law enforcement agencies in the form of transfers of articles suitable for use in counter-drug and counter-terrorism activities.

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April 16, 2012, 16 pages.
Addresses issue of racial profiling among Federal, State, and local law enforcement agencies, and provides an overview of existing and proposed legislative safeguards. Examines constitutional ramifications of racial profiling under unreasonable search and seizure protections and Federal equal protection grounds, citing specific court cases.

"Mapping Police Violence is a research collaborative collecting comprehensive data on police killings nationwide to quantify the impact of police violence in communities." See the website's About the Data page for details on the data and methodology used in this project.

A database of every fatal shooting in the United States by a police officer in the line of duty since Jan. 1, 2015.

This map shows, "county by county the extent to which Black Americans are arrested at a higher rate than White Americans — a trend that has only accelerated in recent decades. They also include data on the arrests of Asian Americans and American Indians, the latter of whom saw an increase in disparity that matches that among Blacks." The map draws from a recent working paper by IPR sociologist, Beth Redbird that analyzes data from more than 13,000 law enforcement agencies nationwide.

"The NYPD Misconduct Complaint Database is a repository of complaints made by the public on record at the Civilian Complaint Review Board (CCRB). These complaints span two distinct periods: the time since the CCRB started operating as an independent city agency outside the NYPD in 1994 and the prior period when the CCRB operated within the NYPD."

"The Bureau of Justice Statistics' Law Enforcement Unit maintains more than a dozen national data collections, covering federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies and special topics in law enforcement. Most data collections are conducted every 2 to 4 years and focus on aggregate or agency-level responses, meaning the information that is collected pertains to units, such as police departments, training academies, and crime labs."

The Sourcebook of Criminal Justice Statistics brings together data from more than 100 published and unpublished sources about many aspects of criminal justice in the United States. Since 1973, the project has been located at the University at Albany, School of Criminal Justice, and compiled and managed by staff at the Hindelang Criminal Justice Research Center in Albany, New York.