Poster #123 - Comparing Officer Use-of-Force Reports with Body-Worn Camera Footage

• In Event: Poster Session II (posters 80 – 155)

Abstract

Use-of-force reports are among the most consequential documents officers write. They must include a detailed narrative of who was involved, what happened, and how the officer made their decisions. Many departments require officers to sign these reports under penalty of perjury, and inaccurate reporting can carry serious consequences. It is not surprising that the accuracy of police reports has drawn considerable attention. The literature points to several factors that can compromise their accuracy. For example, biases can lead officers to fixate on certain details while overlooking others, and stress can distort their memory of the incident. Some officers may even deliberately misrepresent what happened. Yet, few studies have systematically examined how accurate use-of-force reports actually are, despite the fact that many studies rely on police report data, and virtually all of them point to their accuracy as a possible limitation. The current research compares officers' use-of-force reports against footage from their body-worn cameras, with an emphasis on the incidents’ sequential developments. It also examines whether their convergence varies by officer or incident characteristics. The findings have important implications for our understanding of officer use-of-force and law enforcement data.

Author

• Andrew Krajewski, University of Texas at Dallas