The Police Foundation

The Police Foundation
Name	The Police Foundation
Type	Nonprofit think tank
Founded	1970
Founder	United States Department of Justice initiative (incorporating leaders from Harvard University, Stanford University)
Headquarters	Washington, D.C.
Area served	United States
Focus	Criminal justice reform, policing research, public safety

The Police Foundation is an American nonprofit research and policy organization focused on policing, public safety, and criminal justice reform. Founded in 1970, the foundation conducts empirical research, pilot programs, training, and advisory services to law enforcement agencies, municipal officials, and foundations. It has influenced debates involving U.S. Congress, Department of Justice, and local law enforcement agencies in cities such as New York City, Los Angeles, and Chicago.

History

The organization originated in the aftermath of high-profile events including the 1968 United States presidential election aftermath and the expansion of federal criminal law initiatives under the Johnson administration. Early partnerships linked leaders from Harvard University and Stanford University with officials from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the National Institute of Justice. During the 1970s and 1980s the foundation collaborated with municipal departments in Boston, Philadelphia, and Detroit on pilot evaluations related to community policing trends sparked by research at Rutgers University and recommendations from the Kerner Commission. In the 1990s and 2000s its work intersected with national policy shifts around the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 and initiatives involving the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services. Post-2010 the foundation engaged with reforms following incidents such as Ferguson unrest and inquiries tied to the United States Supreme Court decisions on use-of-force and civil liberties.

Mission and Activities

The foundation's stated mission emphasizes improving policing through evidence-based research, pilot testing, and training similar to efforts undertaken by institutions like Brookings Institution and Urban Institute. Its activities range from randomized controlled trials with municipal police departments to convenings with stakeholders including representatives from American Civil Liberties Union, International Association of Chiefs of Police, and philanthropy such as the MacArthur Foundation and the Ford Foundation. The organization provides technical assistance to local governments, collaborates with law schools such as Yale Law School and Columbia Law School, and informs legislative briefings for members of United States House of Representatives and United States Senate committees that oversee criminal justice.

Research and Publications

Research outputs include empirical reports, white papers, toolkits, and evaluation studies modeled after methodologies used at National Academy of Sciences and RAND Corporation. Topics have spanned use-of-force analysis, body-worn camera evaluations, procedural justice assessments, and crime prevention strategies that reference datasets from Bureau of Justice Statistics and municipal open-data portals from San Francisco and Seattle. Publications have been cited in legal filings before the U.S. Court of Appeals and in policy proposals by think tanks such as Heritage Foundation and Center for American Progress. The foundation has produced comparative studies that draw on international practices from London Metropolitan Police Service and Toronto Police Service and has released toolkits aligned with standards from organizations like the American Bar Association.

Programs and Initiatives

Initiatives include demonstration projects on de-escalation training, civilian oversight models, and pilot implementations of body-worn cameras in departments including those in Cleveland, Baltimore, and Denver. Collaborative programs have linked the foundation with academic partners such as University of Pennsylvania and University of Chicago for crime mapping and hot-spots policing experiments influenced by work from Georgetown University and Arizona State University. The foundation has convened task forces addressing officer wellness, data transparency, and civil rights, bringing together leaders from National Sheriffs' Association, Police Executive Research Forum, and advocacy groups like Mothers of the Movement. It also operates fellowship programs modeled on public-policy fellowships at Kennedy School of Government.

Governance and Funding

Governance has typically consisted of a board of directors drawn from law enforcement leaders, academics, philanthropists, and former elected officials including appointees with backgrounds at Department of Homeland Security and state attorney general offices. Funding streams have included grants from private foundations such as Carnegie Corporation, government contracts with entities like National Institute of Justice, and charitable contributions from regional bar associations and corporate donors in sectors represented by Digital Forensics Association-type firms. The foundation has entered memoranda of understanding with municipal agencies and received contracts subject to oversight by audit bodies such as state comptrollers and municipal audit committees.

Criticism and Controversies

The organization has faced criticism from multiple directions: civil rights advocates including American Civil Liberties Union and community groups in Ferguson and Baltimore have questioned the neutrality of studies funded in part by governmental agencies or law enforcement partners. Conservative commentators and some municipal officials have challenged findings that recommend changes to arrest practices, citing reports from think tanks like Hoover Institution that emphasize traditional enforcement. Academic critiques from scholars at John Jay College of Criminal Justice and University of California, Berkeley have scrutinized methodology and conflicts of interest when projects received simultaneous funding from police unions and philanthropic bodies. Controversies have also arisen around a few pilot programs where implementation in cities such as St. Louis produced mixed results and sparked public debate involving state legislatures and local oversight boards.

Category:Criminal justice think tanks