| The scope of this research focuses on conceptual and fundamental aspects of organizational influence over police discretion in field arrests. Conceptually, attention is given to defining and identifying the specific features of the organization that impact police discretion. Empirically, two general tasks are undertaken. The first task uses the conceptual analysis of police discretion control to devise a measure of successful implementation and to examine a range of scores across this measure; herein, referred to as the Arrest Discretion Control Scale (ADCS). The second task describes the extent to which police departments attempt to influence arrest discretion, and examines the relationship of four organizational correlates that are believed to influence arrest discretion.;The extent of this study is national, focusing on the population of municipal police departments in the United States with 200 or more sworn officers. The principal mechanism of data collection was a mailed questionnaire. One hundred forty-seven (70%) of these questionnaires were returned after two mailings. In this study, variables are measured at the organizational level, since police departments were the unit of analysis.;This research seeks explanations and predictions that will generalize to similar organizations. Arrest issues are no less critical to policing than those that pertained to the use of deadly force thirty years ago. Laws, policies, and standards related to arrest procedures are constantly in flux, thereby requiring constant re-education and training in the practice of legal and ethical arrest decisions. It is important to note that a comparatively small number of arrests in this country results in any appreciable prosecution, and an even smaller number results in conviction. However, police agencies maintain that one of their primary objectives is supporting the prosecution of criminals. The arrest decision process has represented a major gap in the conceptual area of discretion control. The time has come to investigate those factors that impact the critical arrest decision process, especially in the area of the organizational level of scrutiny, which has been gravely lacking. This study provides empirical research in the area of organizational structures that helps to close this gap. |
