State-mandated transparency: a discussion and examination of deadly force data among law enforcement agencies in Texas

The current paper provides a critical assessment of the available data on police use of deadly force, including the lack of official, national-level measures, and the recent scholarly reliance on Internet, crowd sourced information. In addition, it presents an alternative data source on the topic in...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Shjarback, John A. (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
Published: [2019]
In: Journal of crime and justice
Year: 2019, Volume: 42, Issue: 1, Pages: 3-17
Online Access: Volltext (Resolving-System)
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Summary:The current paper provides a critical assessment of the available data on police use of deadly force, including the lack of official, national-level measures, and the recent scholarly reliance on Internet, crowd sourced information. In addition, it presents an alternative data source on the topic in the form of legislative, state-mandated collection systems. Starting in September of 2015, Texas became one of a handful of states in which law enforcement agencies are now required to report all incidents where police gunfire injures and/or kills a citizen. This paper previews the Texas data - including its strengths and weaknesses - in addition to performing a descriptive analysis of police shootings that resulted in injury/death for years 2016 and 2017. The potential for state-mandated data collection programs to impact research, accountability, and policy are discussed.
ISSN:2158-9119
DOI:10.1080/0735648X.2018.1547353