Race and the War on Crime: The Sociopolitical Determinants of Municipal Police Expenditures in 90 non-Southern U.S. Cities

Abstract

Three variables suggested by conflict theory--the racial composition of the city, the level of black mobilization activity, and the frequency of riots in the 1960s--are used as independent predictors of municipal policing expenditures in 1971. A simultaneous model which recognizes the interdependence of the police expenditure function with the crime and total city revenue functions is tested using data for a sample of 90 U.S. cities. Racial composition and the level of black mobilization activity were significant predictors of municipal policing expenditures. Race-related variables appear to have had a greater effect on police capital expenditures than on expenditures for salaries and operations. (abstract Adapted from Source: American Sociological Review, 1981. Copyright © 1981 by the American Sociological Association) Conflict Theory 1960s 1970s Racial Factors Police Response Police Intervention Law Enforcement Intervention Crime Intervention African American Crime African American Offender Racial Discrimination Riot 07-02