Community Engagement with Law Enforcement after High-Profile Acts of Police Violence

By Desmond Ang, Panka Bencsik, Jesse Bruhn, Ellora Derenoncourt

We document a sharp rise in gunshots coupled with declining 911 call volume across 13 major US cities in the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd. National survey data also indicate that victims of crime became less likely to report their victimization to law enforcement due to mistrust of police. Our results suggest that high-profile acts of police violence may erode community engagement with law enforcement and highlight the call-to-shot ratio as a natural measure of attitudes toward the police.

AMERICAN ECONOMIC REVIEW: INSIGHTS

VOL. 7, NO. 1, MARCH 2025