RT Article
T1 When Prosecution Is Declined: Factors Influencing Prosecutorial Portrayal of Officers Involved in Shootings
JF Criminal justice policy review
VO 34
IS 3
SP 211
OP 235
A1 Herrera, Jacob
A2 Schaible, Lonnie M.
LA English
YR 2023
UL https://krimdok.uni-tuebingen.de/Record/1837774196
AB Using District Attorney Declination Letters of officer-involved shootings in Denver, Colorado between 2000 and 2020 (N = 132) and drawing on the Narrative Policy Framework, this study examined how prosecutors use of narrative strategies varied with legal and extra-legal characteristics of shooting. Findings indicated that prosecutors were more likely to likely to praise police shootings involving armed subjects, independent witnesses, and injuries to officers. Surprisingly, prosecutors were less likely to praise officers involved in the shooting of African American subjects, unarmed suspects, and in shootings involving a standoff. Findings suggest that while prosecutors largely draw upon legal criteria to justify not prosecuting police, their narrative accounts of declining to pursue criminal charges are also sensitive to extra-legal variables. Implications for theory, practice, and research are discussed.
K1 prosecutors
K1 officer-involved shootings
DO 10.1177/08874034221150639