The Minority Penalty: Disparate Policing Across Noncompliant Minorities and Whites

Abstract

Numerous studies have examined the relationship between racial minorities and police use of force, with many of these studies indicating a direct and positive relationship. However, few studies have assessed the moderation effect of race—how race may amplify the impact of noncompliant behaviors to affect police officers’ decision to use non-lethal force. This study examines this element of amplified influence using insights from the deference norms and focal concerns perspectives to nest the work. While findings suggest that citizens’ noncompliant reactions such as verbal and physical resistance trigger an increase in the likelihood of police use of force, the results indicate that race and ethnicity further condition the effect. Specifically, the influence of citizen demeanor is augmented for minorities when predicting police use of non-lethal force compared to noncompliant Whites. The implications of these findings for police training and equitable administration of justice are discussed.