Abstract

Police use of deadly force represents a pressing public policy issue with implications for police-community relationships and equitable access to justice. A growing body of literature considering the structural factors influencing officers’ exposure to potential violence suggests that context plays a pivotal role in officer use of deadly force. This study explores how local gun ownership rates impact fatal police shootings for a national sample of large law enforcement agencies. Two-level negative binomial regression models examine the organizational and contextual correlates of fatal police shootings from 2014 to 2018, nesting 758 law enforcement agencies within 408 counties. Results indicate that agencies operating within areas characterized by high rates of violent crime and gun ownership were involved in more fatal police shootings. The findings underscore the importance of contextual cues of danger that police officers respond to during fatal police shootings.

摘要

警察使用致命武力是一个紧迫的公共政策问题，对警察与社区的关系和公平诉诸司法有影响。越来越多的文献考虑到影响军官暴露于潜在暴力的结构性因素，表明背景在军官使用致命武力方面起着关键作用。本研究探讨了当地枪支拥有率如何影响全国大型执法机构样本的致命警察枪击事件。两级负二项式回归模型检查了 2014 年至 2018 年致命警察枪击事件的组织和背景相关性，在 408 个县内嵌套了 758 个执法机构。结果表明，在暴力犯罪和枪支拥有率高的地区开展业务的机构参与了更多致命的警察枪击事件。