When Avoidance Backfires: Interracial Officer-Citizen Dyads and the Consequences for Fleeing Suspects

Abstract

Research suggests that Black citizens who experience an elevated fear of law enforcement frequently engage in avoidance strategies, such as fleeing, when confronted by police. There is also strong reason to speculate that this avoidance behavior commonly transpires when the police officer is White. Problematically, this avoidance strategy may place these citizens at an increased risk for officer use of force as the police seek to subdue fleeing suspects. The current study uses data drawn from the Evaluation of Less-Lethal Technologies on Police Use-of-Force project and a series of logistic regression equations and mediation analysis to determine whether Black suspects are more apt to flee from White police officers than other officer-suspect racial dyads and, because of this fleeing behavior, have a greater likelihood of experiencing force. After controlling for a variety of salient factors, results indicate support for this scenario. Policy implications are discussed.

Plain language title

When Avoidance Backfires: Mixed-Race Officer-Citizen Contacts and What Happens When Suspects Run From Police

Plain language summary

Researchers have found that Black people who have a strong fear of police often try to avoid them by doing things like running away when they see police. They may do this whether they are guilty of a crime or not. This kind of dodging behavior arguably happens most often when the police officer is White. As a result of this avoidance technique, Blacks may be more likely than others to experience force by police as officers try to catch suspects who are running away. To study this, information from the Evaluation of Less-Lethal Technologies on Police Use-of-Force project is used along with varied analyses techniques to find out if Black suspects are more likely to run away from White police officers than other racial pairs of officers and suspects, and if so, if this means they are more likely to be subject to force by police. After taking into account a number of important factors, the data support this scenario. The policy consequences are discussed.