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October 1990
RESEARCH REVIEW
POLICE USE OF DISCRETION:
A COMPARISON OF COMMUNITY, SYSTEM,
AND OFFICER EXPECTATIONS
Research Conducted By
Hal Hugh Nees,II
Research Reviewed By
David J. Icove, Ph.D.
FBI Academy
Quantico, Virginia
Police officers display significant levels of discretion in
how they handle various law enforcement scenarios, according to
a research study conducted in conjunction with a doctoral thesis
in Public Administration at the University of Colorado. For
purposes of the study, the available choices were limited to the
following: Take no action, warn the offender, refer to a social
agency, issue a summons, or arrest an individual. The study also
examines the officer's age, sex, ethnicity, education, geographic
residence, marital status, and political orientation.
The study entails the review of 20 incidents covering
traffic violations, disturbances, drug and alcohol violations,
prostitution, juvenile status crimes, vandalism, and gambling.
All were misdemeanor offenses, with the exception of one
involving the cultivation of marijuana. The sample groups of
respondents included 1,077 police officers, probation officers,
prosecuting attorneys, defense attorneys, judges, community
leaders, and ordinary citizens in and around Colorado.
The comparison of police officers to all other groups shows
that officers tend to treat individuals more harshly when
dealing with curfew violations, drugs and alcohol, prostitution,
and vandalism. The survey groups generally thought that the
officers need to act more harshly when handling traffic violators
and gambling offenses. The study also points out that even
members within each group do not always agree with each other.
Officers handle intoxicated individuals differently,
depending upon the suspect's attitude and demographics. It is
more likely that cooperative individuals would be allowed to
return home, while ``outsiders'' would be taken to jail.
Educational level and the experience of officers have an
impact on their decisionmaking process. Generally, the higher
the officer's education, the fewer sanctions the officer would
impose on an individual. However, the study implies that during
the early years of police service, officers tend to act more
harshly, tapering off during their mid-level years, and then
gradually escalating their choice of sanctions in the final years
of their careers.
The results of this study recommend that law enforcement
agencies can take significant steps in the area of ``discretion
management'' the ability of a jurisdiction to uniformly and
fairly exercise levels of discretion by their officers. This
research reinforces previous studies that show that boundaries of
discretion are defined too generally by many law enforcement
agencies. The study also questions whether law enforcement
agencies reflect the priorities within their individual
communities.