I Know My Rights! A National-Level Survey of Rights in Police Encounters

• In Event: Public Perceptions of Criminal Justice Policy and Practice

Abstract

In the United States, our rights, as provided by the Constitution and its Amendments, are sacred. Over the years, the courts have provided rulings helping clarify and contour the instances in which the public has certain rights in police encounters. However, there is reason to question if the public know their rights during police encounters. And are there certain groups of individuals who know more or less about their rights? To answer these questions, this study explores the depth of knowledge about police encounters using a national-level YouGov survey of 1,000 American adults. Furthermore, it examines the cleavages in this knowledge, while considering the implications for these cleavages.

Authors

• Amanda Graham, Texas State University

• Cheryl Lero Jonson, Xavier University