What does the public want police to do during pandemics? A national experiment

• Published date: 01 August 2021
• Author: Justin Nix,Stefan Ivanov,Justin T. Pickett
• Date: 01 August 2021
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1111/1745-9133.12535

Received:  July   Revised:  September  Accepted: November 

DOI: ./- .

SPECIAL ISSUE ARTICLE

THE IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON CRIME AND JUSTICE

What does the public want police to do during

pandemics? A national experiment

Justin Nix1Stefan Ivanov2Justin T. Pickett3

School of Criminology and Criminal

Justice, University of Nebraska Omaha,

Omaha, Nebraska, USA

School of Criminal Justice, State

University of New Yorkat Albany,

Albany, New York,USA

School of Criminal Justice, State

University of New Yorkat Albany,

Albany, New York,USA

Correspondence

JustinNix, School of Criminology and

CriminalJustice, University of Nebraska

Omaha, Dodge Street,  CPACS,

Omaha,NE , USA.

Email:jnix@unomaha.edu

Fundinginformation

Universityat Albany, SUNY Graduate

StudentAssociation Research Award

Research Summary: We administered a survey exper-

iment to a national sample of  U.S. adults in April

 to determine the factors that shape support for

various policing tactics in the midst of the COVID-

pandemic. Respondents were sharply divided in their

views about pandemic policing tactics and were least

supportive of policies that might limit public access to

officers or reduce crime deterrence. Information about

the health risks to officers, but not to inmates, signif-

icantly increased support for “precautionary” policing,

but not for “social distance” policing. The information

effect was modest, but may be larger if the information

came from official sources and/or was communicated

on multiple occasions. Other factors that are associated

with attitudes towardpandemic policing include percep-

tions of procedural justice, altruistic fear, racial resent-

ment, and authoritarianism.

Policy Implications: When considered together with

other evidence, one clear takeawayfrom our study is that

the public values police patrols and wants officers on

call, even during pandemics. Another is that people who

believe the police are procedurally just are more willing

to trust officers in times of crisis and to empower them to

enforce new laws, such as social distancing ordinances.

Our results thus support continued procedural justice

training for officers. A third takeaway is that agencies

must proactively communicate with the public about the

Criminology & Public Policy. ;:–. ©  American Society of Criminology 545wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/capp

546 NIX  .

risks their officers face when responding to public health

crises or natural disasters, in addition to how they pro-

pose to mitigate those risks. They must also be amenable

to adjusting in response to community feedback.

KEYWORDS

COVID-, deterrence, legitimacy, policing, public health, public

opinion

1 INTRODUCTION

In January , the World Health Organization identified a new coronavirus, COVID-, which

has since spread rapidly throughout the world. By March, they had classified it as a global pan-

demic. At the time of this writing, the virus has infected over  million people worldwide and

claimed the lives of over ,. The United States has been hit especially hard,with over . mil-

lion confirmed cases and , deaths (CDC, ). In the absence of a vaccine, the virus has

caused significant societal disruptions to those not infected—including the cancellation of sport-

ing events, festivals, and concerts; the suspension of in-person K- and college classes; closure

of nonessential businesses; and in many places, orders from government officials to stay at home

and practice “social distancing.” The shutdowns have had dire economic consequences. In May,

the U.S. Labor Department reported that . million Americans had filed for unemployment in

the previous eight weeks. Such abrupt changes to citizens’ daily lives have major consequences

for the criminal justice system (Jennings & Perez, ; Lum, Maupin, & Stoltz, ).

The police, in particular, are faced with three primary concerns. The first is that, like every-

one else, officers are at risk of contracting COVID-19. In New York City, a hotspot for the virus,

over  members of the NYPD had tested positive, and  had died, as of early May (Rumm-

ler, ). The Detroit Police Department was similarly ravaged by the virus: % of uniformed

officers tested positive—including the Chief—and nearly % were quarantined at some point

(Eligon & MacFarquhar,). Such alarming statistics, coupled with a shortage of personal pro-

tective equipment (PPE), suggest a need for precautionary policing—that is, cutting back on self-

initiated activities and enforcement of low-level crimes. Indeed, a survey of approximately 

police departments conducted in March revealed that % had “adopted formal policies to reduce

or limit proactive traffic or pedestrian stops” (Lum et al., ). Forexample, the South Burlington

(VT) Police Department instructed officers to limit proactive traffic stops to “more serious viola-

tions.” Meanwhile, Gloucester Township (NJ) police officers were told “pedestrian contacts and

stops will only be conducted when necessary for public safety or caretaking purposes.”In theory,

deemphasizing these sorts of enforcement activities should protect both officers and citizens by

providing fewer opportunities for the virus to be transmitted.

A second, related concern for the police is reducing jail populations. Many states have made

conscious efforts to reduce jail and prison populations to avoid the spread of COVID- among

inmates (Nowotny, Bailey, Omori, & Brinkley-Rubinstein, ; Saloner, Parish, Ward, DiLaura,

& Dolovich, ). Here again, precautionary policing is one obvious way to do this. As but one

example, the Rockford (IL) Police Department ordered its officers to issue Notices to Appear,

rather than making custodial arrests, for misdemeanor crimes in the interest of reducing the