Policing and care in mental health crisis response: Boundary work and the politics of safety and authority.

Racial attitudes and public perceptions of police reform: An empirical analysis informed by racial threat theory

Indonesian criminal procedure law normatively guarantees human rights protection through the principle of due process of law. However, in practice, investigations frequently prioritize formal legality over substantive justice, rely heavily on investigators’ verbalization, and apply excessive pre-trial detention. This tendency is illustrated in Supreme Court Decision Number 1584 K/Pid/2015, where evidentiary construction was primarily based on testimonium de auditu—statements derived from investigators—rather than direct empirical evidence. This study aims to: (1) analyze the legal construction of criminal investigations from a due process perspective; (2) evaluate the relationship between investigator authority, discretion, and professional ethics in shaping evidence; and (3) formulate recommendations for institutional reform grounded in human rights protection. The research employs a qualitative normative-empirical approach through document analysis, examining statutory regulations, particularly the Criminal Code and human rights instruments, relevant jurisprudence, and legal scholarship on due process, discretion, and police ethics. The findings indicate that although investigations may formally comply with statutory provisions, substantively they deviate from due process principles. Evidence formation often depends on investigator narratives and post-incident testimony while neglecting objective proof, undermining material justice. Broad discretionary powers, weak internal oversight, and inconsistent professional ethics contribute to a gap between normative expectations (das sollen) and empirical reality (das sein). Consequently, structural reforms are required to strengthen evidentiary oversight, restrict pre-trial detention practices, and enforce stricter ethical standards to ensure fair investigations and safeguard suspects’ rights.

Abstract In the context of historically low levels of public trust in policing in England and Wales, this paper considers the contribution of arts-led modes of police-community engagement as part of a broader project of change for the police. A processual perspective on policing suggests that it is how the police enact their role, more than substantive outcomes, which influences public perceptions of the police. In this context, Procedural Justice Theory, with its focus on officers upholding the principles of respect, voice, trustworthiness, and neutrality during encounters with the public, carries possibilities for trust-building. In this paper, we find value in reading arts-based encounters through a procedural justice lens; however, where our work deviates from traditional procedural justice literature is in its focus on police-community engagement in a non -enforcement space; its qualitative approach; and its prioritisation of attitudinal change on the part of officers rather than the public. Ultimately, we argue that engagement through the arts can offer opportunities for ‘teachable moments’ for police officers, and could support small but meaningful change in a broader process of (re)building and re-imagining relationships between police and policed.

Without a doubt, if properly implemented, securitization has allowed for urgent responses to real threats. This has also led to the alliance of recognized powers, the military mobilization of everyday governance, a weakening of police legitimacy, and the exclusion of non-security solutions. Security has remained a major issue in both core and peripheral countries, but it seems to have had its degree of effectvivness that depends on the context behind security challenge. In Nigeria, security seems to have faced more challenges as, over the years, security challenges tend to have progressed instead of regressing. This has caused citizens to question the security sector of Nigeria. Furthermore, the research made use of securitisation theory as a tool that investigates Nigeria's political authorities, security institutions, and public discourse that turned social issues into existential security threats. The focus is on three unified areas: counter-insurgency efforts against Boko Haram, rural violence and the farmer-herder conflict, and urban policing reform. The paper scrutinized the processes of developing a role for the security institution in Nigeria, how it has changed Nigeria's civil-military relations, reshaped policing operations, and its impacts on human rights and governance.

Abstract This article examines the institutional evolution and professionalization of the state police in Prague during the final decades of the Habsburg monarchy, arguing that the transformation of the Prague State Police between 1893 and 1910 represents a proactive effort in modern state-building. Drawing on reports from the Prague Police Directorate and the Bohemian Governor’s Office, it analyzes how recurring episodes of mass violence—specifically the unrest of the early 1890s, the riots of December 1897, and the nationalist disturbances of 1908—exposed the structural vulnerabilities of a security apparatus designed for routine policing rather than mass politics. The article highlights a significant shift in administrative strategy: the movement away from a reliance on military intervention, which was increasingly viewed by civil authorities as a “double defeat” that undermined the legitimacy of the constitutional state. Instead, police directors such as Georg Dörfl and Karel Křikava successfully advocated for a robust, civilian-controlled force characterized by increased manpower, modernized equipment, and the establishment of a dedicated reserve for professional training. By 1910, the Prague Guard had largely expanded, reflecting a fundamental reconceptualization of urban order where protest was accepted as an unavoidable feature of political life to be contained by professional civilian forces rather than crushed by the army.

Police effectiveness constitutes a foundational element of state capacity, particularly in fragile security environments where violent crime, insurgency, and public distrust undermine governance and social order (World Bank, 2023; UNDP, 2022). In Nigeria, persistent weaknesses in policing manifested in corruption, brutality, low investigative capacity, and strained police–community relations have endured despite repeated reform initiatives, most notably following the 2020 #EndSARS protests (Amnesty International, 2021; CLEEN Foundation, 2021). This article argues that these deficiencies are not merely the result of individual misconduct or leadership failure but are rooted in structural weaknesses embedded in recruitment practices and training curricula within the Nigeria Police Force (NPF). Drawing on secondary data, policy documents, and recent empirical studies published between 2020 and 2025, the article examines how compromised entry standards, politicized recruitment processes, and outdated, militarized training frameworks undermine professional competence, operational effectiveness, and institutional legitimacy. Anchored in state capacity theory and human capital theory, the study demonstrates that Nigeria’s policing challenges reflect deeper institutional fragility rather than isolated behavioral lapses. The article concludes that sustainable police reform in fragile security settings must prioritize merit-based recruitment, curriculum modernization, and continuous professional development as core strategies for rebuilding state capacity, legitimacy, and effective security governance.

Reform of the Indonesian National Police since its separation from the Indonesian National Armed Forces in 1999 has become a strategic agenda in the consolidation of democracy. Transformation efforts through various programs, from Bureaucratic Reform to the Precision Police vision, aim to build a professional, transparent, and accountable institution. However, public perception of Polri performance remains fluctuating, evident in the paradox between the public’s need for security and increasing criticism related to corruption, discrimination, and human rights violations. This study aims to analyze Polri reform from the public’s perspective, assess the transition from criticism to collaboration, and identify forms of criticism and patterns of collaboration. The method used is a qualitative constructivist paradigm with a literature study approach and secondary data analysis from CSO reports, public opinion surveys, and the media. The findings indicate that digital service innovation is appreciated by the public, but integrity and accountability remain weaknesses, resulting in criticism continuing to emerge as indicators of legitimacy erosion. In conclusion, internalizing procedural justice, building social legitimacy, and consistent dialogic communication are key to transforming criticism into a strategic partnership between Polri and the public.

ABSTRACT This article introduces a kinship anthropology of policing framework to analyze the complexities and contestedness of police reform trajectories. Kinship is approached in a processual sense, made through practices and performances, and I contend that police officers act as a kin‐like group who engage in kinning. In turn, police reform trajectories and oversight practices are geared towards dekinning and the disruption of kin‐like groups to implement change. Yet, I argue that oversight practices also occur within the realm of kin due to the ambiguities of kinship. By approaching policing through the lens of kinship, I show how relations of loyalty and belonging are not merely institutional effects, but forms of relatedness actively produced through everyday practices of kinning and dekinning. To exemplify this, I draw from my ethnographic fieldwork conducted in Kenya between 2017 and 2018 and problematize the internal‐external oversight dichotomy prevalent in oversight studies. This paper contributes to anthropology of policing scholarship, and specifically anthropologists working on police reform and oversight.

IMPACT This article provides important insights for evaluating policy reform outcomes and identifying strategies to improve implementation and overcome persistent barriers. Indonesia offers a revealing case: although reforms have expanded public access to policing and security, their overall impact remains limited. Achieving sustainable police reform therefore requires an integrated approach that addresses the full range of structural challenges impeding genuine transformation. Suggested policy recommendations include reducing presidential control over police operations, narrowing the scope of police responsibilities to core functions of maintaining law and order and ensuring public security, and strengthening public accountability through robust, independent oversight mechanisms. This analysis carries international significance by offering transferable insights for countries facing similar challenges in police reform, particularly when oligarchic politics shape both the nature and process of public sector reform in post-authoritarian political contexts.

ABSTRACT Discussions around policing in America highlight a need for police reform and community-based alternatives to the police. Community participation is necessary for both of these goals. Collective efficacy, defined as the process by which social cohesion is activated as action in communities, is a framework for understanding how groups act collectively. Though collective efficacy is associated with multiple positive outcomes, interventions based on collective efficacy are limited in their effectiveness. The present study tests mutual efficacy and neighboring as factors that mediate the relationship between social cohesion and two actions: neighborhood activism and informal social control. Findings suggest that mutual efficacy and neighboring mediate the relationship between social cohesion and neighborhood activism but not informal social control. Results emphasize the importance of practice behaviors that empower and develop connections among community members. These behaviors can have a direct effect on activism and an indirect role in community-based crime prevention.

Police autonomy, data-driven strategies, and violence: Evidence from Brazil’s policing reform

Street murals became widely visible after the killing of George Floyd in 2020, when the BLM movement expanded across major U.S. cities. This study aimed to investigate the impact street murals had on the Black Lives Matter (BLM) protests. Activists painted street murals of victims, the Black Lives Matter slogan, armed police officers, and messages to support the movement. The qualitative study recruited eight participants for interviews. Participants were college students selected through convenience sampling. Interviews were recorded via Zoom, transcribed, and coded using Nvivo to identify patterns in the data. Thematic analysis revealed that murals united the public in support of BLM, enlightened the public about racial injustices, and increased calls for police reforms. However, the destruction and removal of some murals reveals political divisions in the country, which will delay racial justice in the country. The study concludes that murals are powerful forms of public art that activists can use to highlight social problems and increase support. The study is significant because understanding how the public responds to visual activism reveals the crucial role of art in social change.

Autistic individuals face increased risk during police interactions in the United States, including injury and death. Research shows police behave inequitably during interactions with marginalized communities and may behave even more inequitably toward individuals with multiple minoritized identities. Many autistic people also identify as gender diverse. However, it is largely unknown if or how autistic adults' perceptions of police differ by gender identity. We examined autistic adults' perceptions of policing, autism, and gender using an online questionnaire. Results revealed significant differences across gender groups (cis women, cis men, gender diverse) in perceptions of justice, comfort in disclosing diagnosis, helpfulness of diagnostic disclosure, influence of gender, and concern that one's autistic traits would be misperceived as dangerous. These findings align with widespread calls for police reform and suggest current policing practices likely do not meet the needs of all autistic individuals, particularly autistic cis women and gender diverse individuals, who are more likely to report their gender has influenced police interactions and more concerned that their autistic characteristics are being misperceived, relative to autistic cis men. Reducing the harm marginalized groups face because of systemic inequities in the current policing system is a critical need that could enhance safety for autistic individuals.Lay abstractAutistic people in the United States are at a higher risk of injury or death when they interact with the police. Research has shown that police often treat people from minoritized communities unfairly, and this can be even worse for people who belong to more than one minoritized group, like being both autistic and gender diverse. Many autistic people also identify as gender diverse. However, we do not yet know if autistic people's views of police may differ across gender identities. In this study, we explored how autistic adults view police and if those views differ across different gender identities. We found that autistic adults with different gender identities have different views on things like justice, how comfortable they feel telling police about their autism diagnosis, whether they think telling the police about their diagnosis would be helpful, how they think their gender affects police behavior, and whether they worry that their autistic traits might be seen as dangerous. These results may indicate that the current policing practices may not take into account autistic individuals' unique perspectives and experiences, particularly when police are interacting with autistic women and gender diverse people. It is important that we make changes to reduce the harm that autistic people face because of unfairness in the current policing system using feedback from autistic individuals. This could make things safer for all autistic people. Our results suggest it could be beneficial for police officers to receive training that is inclusive of the gender diversity within the autistic community, so they can better protect and respect all autistic people.

Correction: Policing protests: an experimental evaluation of the impact of protester race on support for Police reform

Organizational and legal measures are provided to improve the quality of training of law enforcement agencies of Ukraine during the war, taking into account the implementation of the experience of educational institutions and law enforcement training centers of advanced European countries and the USA in order to provide support for the training of the national police, develop recommendations for improving the standards of advanced training and training of police officers and the functioning of the law enforcement system as a whole, as well as to solve problems related to the restructuring of the police education and training system as a key element of police reform. It is noted that a key element of the reform of law enforcement agencies is the restructuring of the police education and training system. In particular, the National Police of Ukraine, together with the Ministry of Internal Affairs, approved the qualification characteristics of the police profession. This was the impetus for the development of a standard of professional education (police competencies). The next step was the development of a strategy for a model of police education and training, which was proposed by the Ministry of Internal Affairs. It is argued that currently there is no single mechanism for developing curricula for all types of law enforcement training. The vast majority of curricula for the National Police of Ukraine are developed by higher educational institutions of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in agreement with the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the relevant specialized police unit. It is emphasized that the implementation of international experience of education models into domestic police training standards is extremely important for supporting the reform and identifying the most promising national solutions regarding the police education/training model in the following areas: curriculum development, education and training process; advanced training and professional development; educational infrastructure of police. It is indicated that the choice of a specific model of law enforcement depends on many factors, including the historical characteristics of the country, socio-economic conditions, the level of crime, and much more. The optimal approach is to combine different models, which allows achieving maximum efficiency in the fight against crime and ensuring public order.

This article examines police reforms through a meta-relational framework: one that resists resolution and foregrounds the tensions, contradictions, and partial truths that shape institutional life. Focusing on active listening in U.S. police training, particularly the Integrating Communications, Assessment, and Tactics (ICAT) program, it shifts the question from whether such reforms “work” to how listening becomes a site where care, control, legitimacy, and resistance intersect. Drawing on the ICAT curriculum, ethnographic fieldwork at a North Carolina police academy, and interviews with trainees, the article argues that listening is not merely a communicative skill, but a relational technology shaped by institutional logics. Within this frame, reformist and abolitionist perspectives are treated not as opposing endpoints but as partial, coexisting lenses that illuminate different dimensions of the same policing terrain: reform highlights the openings that listening trainings may create, while abolition underscores their structural limits. Through three vignettes: the case of Sandra Bland, a role-play training scenario, and video-recorded police–civilian encounters, the article traces how police listening can both reproduce institutional power (“the trap”) and generate moments of relational reconfiguration (“the emergent”). It concludes by arguing that police listening must account for the relational, historical, and institutional conditions of listening itself.

As Francis Dodsworth argues, histories of nineteenth-century British policing and detection have neglected to examine the extent, influence and legacy of corruption, scandal and organisational mismanagement within the police itself. Rather than face these issues head on, studies generally prefer to touch upon the subject carefully, incidentally, and in a perhaps ‘curated’ manner, leaving a significant gap in the history of police reform driven by public outrage and political influence. However, this also means that the influence of scandal and corruption in the police force on the development and representation of police officers and detectives in contemporaneous fiction also remains under-examined. This essay contextualises the presence of police officers and detectives in popular fiction from the mid-to-late nineteenth century against a swathe of contemporaneous scandals and corruption cases, as well as organisational mishaps and the resultant downturn in public opinion of the police, as they were reported in the periodical and newspaper press. It builds a more sophisticated picture of the relationship between the police, the press, and the publishing industry in the latter half of the nineteenth century, using events such as the 1867 Clerkenwell Prison bombing, the 1877 ‘Great Detective Case,’ the 1888 Whitechapel Murders, and the 1888 Thames Torso Murders, among others, as anchor points, and contextualises them against contemporaneous writing to argue that the history of ‘detective’ fiction should be historicized alongside ‘detection’ itself.

In recent decades, tensions between law enforcement and African American communities have intensified, symbolized by the Black Lives Matter (BlackLM) and Blue Lives Matter (BlueLM) movements. While the BlackLM movement has garnered widespread attention, few empirical studies have examined the BlueLM movement. This study fills that gap by collecting data from a predominantly Hispanic community to analyze support for the BlueLM movement. Key variables include satisfaction with police contact, political affiliation, and perceptions of racial bias in police use of force. Findings show that among Hispanics, public support for BlueLM is shaped by political identity, personal experiences with the police, and perceptions of fairness in policing practices. Support for BlueLM stems from trust in state institutions and positive interactions with the police. The findings offer insights for community engagement strategies and police reform efforts.

Defund vs. refund: The role of funding in police reform in the U.S.