Dissecting the Complexities of the Relationship Between Police Officer-Civilian Race/Ethnicity Dyads and Less-Than-Lethal Use of Force

• Published in: American journal of public health (1971) Vol. 107; no. 7; pp. 1164 - 1170
• Main Authors: Jetelina, Katelyn K, Jennings, Wesley G, Bishopp, Stephen A, Piquero, Alex R, Reingle Gonzalez, Jennifer M
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States American Public Health Association 01.07.2017
• Subjects: AJPH Research; Arrests; Bivariate analysis; Black or African American - statistics & numerical data; Civilians; Criminal investigations; Cross-Sectional Studies; Deadly force; Dissipation; Dyads; Economic conditions; Economic forecasts; Economic indicators; Epidemiology; Ethnicity; Hispanic Americans; Hispanic or Latino - statistics & numerical data; Humans; Mental health; Minority & ethnic groups; Multilevel; Pepper spray; Police; Police - psychology; Public health; Race; Regression analysis; Statistical data; Violence - prevention & control; Violence - psychology; Violence - statistics & numerical data; White People - statistics & numerical data; United States > US
• ISSN: 0090-0036; 1541-0048
• DOI: 10.2105/AJPH.2017.303807

To examine how sublethal use-of-force patterns vary across officer-civilian race/ethnicity while accounting for officer-, civilian-, and situational-level factors. We extracted cross-sectional data from 5630 use-of-force reports from the Dallas Police Department in 2014 and 2015. We categorized each officer-civilian interaction into race/ethnicity dyads. We used multilevel, mixed logistic regression models to evaluate the relationship between race/ethnicity dyads and the types of use of force. Forty-eight percent of use-of-force interactions occurred between a White officer and a non-White civilian (White-non-White). In bivariate models, the odds of hard-empty hand control and intermediate weapon use were significantly higher among White-Black dyads compared with White-White dyads. The bivariate odds of intermediate weapon use were also significantly higher among Black-Black, Hispanic-White, Black-Hispanic, and Hispanic-Black dyads compared with White-White dyads. However, after we controlled for individual and situational factors, the relationship between race/ethnicity dyad and hard-empty hand control was no longer significant. Although we observed significant bivariate relationships between race/ethnicity dyads and use of force, these relationships largely dissipated after we controlled for other factors.