Arrest Discretion of Police Officers: The Impact of Varying Organizational Structures

Groeneveld studies the conceptual and fundamental aspects of organizational influence over police discretion in field arrests. He finds that street-level discretion by field officer-the basis of community policing--can, and is, significantly affected by organizational structures. Most departments attempt to limit or at least delimit officer discretion in making arrests.

Arrest issues are no less critical to policing than those pertaining to the use of deadly force. A comparatively small number of arrests results in any appreciable prosecution, and an even smaller number in conviction. The arrest decision process has represented a major gap in the conceptual area of discretion control, especially at the organizational level of scrutiny.