‘We handle it, I guess you’d say, the East Texas way’: Place-based effects on the police decision-making process and non-arrest outcomes

ABSTRACT

Informal law enforcement approaches to crime problems are largely hidden from the public domain. Non-urban communities are often absent from the literature on police decision-making, but many characteristics of ‘the rural’ – such as lack of supervision, diminished access to resources, and more – expand police discretion and increase the use of informal policing methods. While most research on police discretion focuses on the decision to arrest, the current study utilizes semi-structured focused interviews with law enforcement officers in rural Texas to address non-arrest decision-making and the informal policing of youth. Specific informal responses, as well as factors that influence officer decision-making, are discussed. The findings suggest that the structural, cultural, and situational context of a rural setting uniquely affects police decision-making, highlighting the significance of geographic and sociocultural environment in use of discretion. The qualitative approach and analysis provide extensive detail regarding place-based effects on the police decision-making process, including officer motivations and how officers attribute meaning and contextually filter information in an encounter with youth. By illuminating the gray area of policing, these findings have implications for rural law enforcement training and practices and provide future direction for broader agency policy research.

KEYWORDS:

• Discretionary decision-making
• police discretion
• rural policing
• informal sanctions

Acknowledgments

The author would like to thank the Association of Doctoral Programs in Criminology and Criminal Justice (ADPCCJ) for awarding funding in the form of the 2019 Spring Student Research Award. These funds ($1,614.00) paid for the software and transcription services used in this project. Additionally, the author is grateful to the law enforcement officers who made this research possible. This research was conducted for completion of the author’s dissertation and the study (#1809624181) was reviewed by Indiana University’s Institutional Review Board and approved as exempt. Study Information Sheets were provided to participants and verbal consent was obtained, as approved by IU’s IRB. There are no known conflicts of interest to disclose and there are no competing interests to declare.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1. In Texas, delinquency is defined as conduct that violates state or federal law that is punishable by confinement in jail or imprisonment, including driving under the influence. Texas law explicitly lists the commission of misdemeanors punishable by fine, running away from home, inhalation of chemicals, and truancy from school as ‘conduct indicating a need for supervision’ (i.e. status offense – §51.02(2), Texas Family Code (F.C.); §51.03(a)(1), F.C.; §51.03(b), F.C.).

2. In Texas, taking a child into custody does not constitute an ‘arrest.’ However, ‘a child may be taken into custody pursuant to the laws of arrest.’ (§52.01, F.C.).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Jessica Rene Peterson

Jessica Peterson received her PhD in Criminal Justice from Indiana University and is currently an Assistant Professor in the Criminal Justice Department at the University of Nebraska at Kearney, as well as an Honorary Adjunct Lecturer and Research Associate at the University of New England in Australia. Dr. Peterson’s primary research interests include policing, discretionary decision-making, and rural crime and justice.