Biography:
Dr. Bocar Ba is a labor economist and assistant professor at Duke University, who specialized in police accountability. His work takes a close look at where breakdowns happen in the criminal justice system, following cases from arrests to depositions. Using insight from labor economics literature, he seeks to understand police use of force, overall police officer behavior and what cities want from their local law enforcement. His research, funded by the Russell Sage Foundation and Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Pipeline Grant, has been featured in the Journal of Labor Economics, American Journal of Political Science, Journal of Urban Economics, and more.
Dr. Ba earned his bachelor’s in economics and finance at the Université du Québec à Montréal and master’s in economics at the University of British Columbia. He completed his Ph.D. in public policy at the University of Chicago in 2018.
Student Lecture: 3 October 2024
The Role of Officer Race and Gender in Police-Civilian Interactions in Chicago
Diversification is a widely proposed policing reform, but its impact is difficult to assess. We used records of millions of daily patrol assignments in Chicago to compare the average behavior of officers of different demographic profiles working in comparable conditions. Relative to white officers, Black and Hispanic officers make far fewer stops and arrests, and they use force less often, especially against Black civilians. These effects are largest in majority-Black areas of Chicago and stem from reduced focus on enforcing low-level offenses, with greatest impact on Black civilians. Female officers also use less force than males, a result that holds within all racial groups. These results suggest that diversity reforms can improve police treatment of minority communities.
Faculty Lecture: 4 October 2024
Understanding Demand For Police Alternatives
In a series of experiments, we present evidence of bipartisan public demand for police alternatives, contrasted with persistent policy resistance from key stakeholders. First, our survey experiment demonstrates that introducing U.S. respondents to dontcallthepolice.com (DCTP), a database of non-governmental emergency response options, significantly reduces reliance on police for nonviolent situations. However, this effect does not extend to violent scenarios where no police substitutes exist. Second, our follow-up survey reveals enduring impacts, including heightened recall of the 988 hotline as an alternative during suicidal crises. Third, our field experiment and qualitative interviews find police resistance to embracing DCTP, despite widespread public support for nonviolent police substitutes.