Federal Intervention in American Police Departments

by Stephen Rushin

Overview

For much of American history, the federal government has played a limited role in local police regulation. That all changed in 1994, when Congress passed a little known statute that permitted the US Attorney General to reform troubled police departments. Since then, many of the nation's largest police departments - including those in Los Angeles, Chicago, Seattle, Washington, DC, New Orleans, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Cleveland, and Albuquerque - have been subject to federal oversight. But until recently, we've known little about how this federal process works. Drawing on original interviews, court documents, statistical data, and media reports, this book provides the first comprehensive account of federal intervention in American police departments. It shows that, under the right circumstances, federal intervention is uniquely effective at combating misconduct in police departments. However, federal intervention is far from perfect. This book concludes by arguing that Congress should expand and improve federal oversight of policing.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781107105737
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	04/07/2017
Pages:	308
Product dimensions:	6.22(w) x 9.29(h) x 0.87(d)

About the Author

Stephen Rushin is an Assistant Professor at the University of Alabama School of Law. He specializes in police regulation, criminal law, criminal procedure, and privacy law. He holds a JD and PhD from the University of California, Berkeley. His research has appeared in top academic journals such as Cornell Law Review, California Law Review, and Minnesota Law Review. Numerous national media outlets have featured his research and expertise, including the Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles Times, Philadelphia Inquirer, National Public Radio, PBS Frontline, Time Magazine, Al Jazeera America, and BBC America.

Table of Contents

Introduction; 1. The problem of police misconduct; 2. The intervention era; 3. Federal intervention in action; 4. Possibilities and limitations; 5. Moving forward: improving oversight of local police.