Beyond Non-Enforcement: The Dynamics of Police-Criminal Collusion

• In Event: 2229 - Section on Political Sociology Refereed Roundtables (1 hour)
  In Refereed Roundtable 60min: Political Sociology Refereed Roundtable #8

Abstract

This article examines the relational dynamics of police-criminal collusion: the illicit relationships and hidden transactions between law enforcement officers and drug dealers. While depictions of clandestine interactions are common in popular culture, social scientific research has been limited and has focused primarily on the exchange of money for non-enforcement of the law. Drawing on an original legal archive of court cases in Argentina, this article dissects the dynamics of police-criminal collusion. Beyond non-enforcement, we find that illicit relations allow for the exchange of material and informational resources and the manipulation of bureaucratic procedures marked by frequent mistakes, improvisations, and corrections. The paper concludes by considering the implications of these findings for understanding the systemic violence of the drug trade and the possibilities for using judicial records to examine state actions hidden from public view.

Authors

• Katherine Sobering, University of North Texas

• Mary Ellen Stitt, University of Texas - Austin; American Bar Foundation

• Javier Auyero, UT