The Effect of Police Oversight on Crime and Misconduct Allegations: Evidence from Chicago

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Rivera, Roman G.; Ba, Bocar A.
• 署名单位: Georgetown University; Duke University; National Bureau of Economic Research
• 刊物名称: REVIEW OF ECONOMICS AND STATISTICS
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0034-6535
• DOI: 10.1162/rest_a_01377
• 发表日期: 2026
• 关键词: motor-vehicle searches; BODY-WORN CAMERAS; law-enforcement; LEGAL CYNICISM; FORCE; cops; increases; benefits; impacts; cities

摘要

Does police oversight increase crime? Studies examining this relationship often rely on major scandals as shocks, but the simultaneous effect of public outrage on officer behavior and crime contaminates the results. Using a framework distinguishing oversight and outrage, we identify two events that increased oversight but elicited no public reaction. We find that despite a subsequent decline in reported misconduct, these oversight increases likely did not significantly impact crime or officer activity, suggesting oversight can reduce misconduct without increasing crime. However, a major policing scandal likely increased crime but did not increase arrests and decreased stops and uses of force.