Governability Matters: The Private Policing of Economic Crime and the Challenge of Democratic Governance

Abstract

Policing scholars have long recognized the challenges posed by the privatization and pluralization of policing to prospects for democratic governance. However, these concerns have been geared almost exclusively to the frontline policing functions of private security firms and have overlooked developments in the wider field of security. This article challenges this limited vision by extending the question of governance and accountability to the field of financial security and the activities of the “forensic accounting and corporate investigation industry” as a private alternative to the public policing of economic crime. Drawing on documentary research and semi-structured interviews, the argument is advanced that the unique characteristics of this industry and the legal environment in which it operates conspire to problematize and limit its amenability to external forms of governance and control. Understanding these barriers to governability is presented as a necessary first step in coming to terms with the growth of the FACI industry as a purveyor of financial security.

Keywords:

• Private policing and security
• Economic crime
• Democratic governance
• Accountability and legal standards
• Public versus private

Notes

The author would like to thank the Law Commission of Canada and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council for their generous support of this research, and recognize the contributions of Margaret E. Beare to the research process.

James W. Williams is at the University of Windsor, Canada.