In spite of its dangers and prevalence, occupational crime is rarely addressed through criminal-law channels, largely because resource constraints and legal rules or ambiguities hamper criminal investigations and prosecutions. Little empirical research exists into law-enforcement personnel’s attempts to secure arrests and prosecutions of occupational offenders. The present study uses data from in-depth interviews with officers and agents tasked with investigating physicians suspected of profit-motivated overprescribing of opioids, a type of occupational offending. The themes that emerged during data analysis highlight specific challenges to these criminal investigations and the ways police and prosecutors circumvented such obstacles. Discussion of the findings centers on implications for research and policy to further the goal of successfully prosecuting occupational offenders in criminal courts.

尽管存在职业犯罪的危险和普遍性，但很少通过刑法渠道解决职业犯罪，这主要是因为资源限制，法律规则或含糊不清阻碍了刑事调查和起诉。执法人员为确保对职业罪犯的逮捕和起诉所做的尝试几乎没有任何实证研究。本研究使用对官员和代理商进行深入采访的数据，这些官员和代理人负责调查怀疑是出于利润动机而对阿片类药物开处方（一种职业犯罪）的医生。数据分析过程中出现的主题凸显了这些刑事调查所面临的具体挑战，以及警察和检察官如何规避此类障碍。