Arrest Decisions: What Works for the Officer? (New Perspectives in Criminology and Criminal Justice)

This book demonstrates how, when the processing of arrests affects police officers’ personal lives, they adapt their arrest-making behavior to accommodate self-interest. Based on a survey of over five hundred New York Police Department patrol officers, the book assesses how overtime need, post-work commitments, aversion to arrest processing, and other personal concerns affect officers’ decisions whether or not to make an arrest. Largely ignored in previous research, these factors must be taken into account as they significantly affect arrest behavior.