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What Does Federal Oversight Do to Policing and Public Safety? Evidence from Seattle
(Forthcoming Article) - This paper investigates how federal oversight not precipitated by a major scandal influences
policing behavior and public safety. The high-profile events triggering such
scandals can independently affect policing and crime, confounding estimates of oversight
effects. I examine a 2011 federal investigation into the Seattle Police Department.
In response to the heightened scrutiny from the investigation, officers immediately and
significantly reduced stops, particularly suspicious-activity and traffic stops in minority
neighborhoods. These reductions had no detectable effect on public safety. I conclude
that federal oversight implemented in the absence of scandals may lower the social cost
of policing.
