Can We Really Defund the Police? A Nine-Agency Study of Police Response to Calls for Service
Open accessAbstract
The protests following the killing of George Floyd in the summer of 2020 led to contentious discussions and debates in many cities about policing, with some calling to “defund the police.” However, this debate has generally proceeded without adequate research about either the scale or nature of issues that the police handle and the potential consequences of the proposed reform efforts. To respond to this research gap, we analyze millions of 911 calls for service across nine U.S. agencies. We report on the types of calls for service that the police handle, including how frequently different calls arise, how much time agencies spend on different categories of calls, and the outcomes of those calls. We find that the amount and types of incidents for which people call the police are voluminous, with the vast majority not obviously transferable to other organizations or government sectors without significant resource expenditures or adjustments. However, if the police retain these responsibilities, they also need to reconsider how they can more effectively address community concerns.
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A quarter to two-thirds of emergency calls involving disorder, mental health, medical, and noncriminal calls to which police currently respond could instead be directed to mental health crisis experts and other first responders.
“Recent estimates (6, 7) suggest that a quarter to two-thirds of the emergency calls involving disorder, mental health, medical, and noncriminal calls to which police currently respond could instead be directed to mental health crisis experts and other first responders (i.e., a “community response” model).”
From A community response approach to mental health and substance abuse crises reduced crime (2022) · cites this paper as [7]
The Results (page unavailable) show that many calls dispatched to police involve disorder or other non-serious matters, and the paper discusses diverting some calls to other providers. It does not estimate that a quarter to two-thirds of these calls could be redirected; the Results instead say further research is needed to assess whether other providers could handle them safely and effectively. (LLM, conf=0.86)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredRecent studies suggest 20%-40% of calls are low priority or nonurgent, one quarter involve any crime, and only approximately 4%-6% involve violent crimes where police response is unequivocally necessary.
“Recent studies suggest 20%-40% of calls are low priority or nonurgent (Irwin & Pearl, 2020), one quarter involve any crime, and only approximately 4%-6% involve violent crimes where police response is unequivocally necessary (Lum et al., 2022).”
From Diverting 911 calls: Lessons from early adopting urban jurisdictions (2024) · cites this paper as Lum et al., 2022
The Results (Frequency by Call Type; page unavailable) say that most calls in the nine agencies were not for serious crimes or obvious emergencies, supporting the claim’s general point. The passages do not establish that one quarter of calls involved any crime or that 4%–6% involved violent crime; they also do not classify all violent-crime calls as unequivocally requiring a police response. The 20%–40% figure is attached to a different citation and is not assessed here. (LLM, conf=0.83)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredThere is not currently credible, causal evidence on the effects of initiatives to improve police training and cooperation with health professionals or community response models.
“Although each of these programmatic models is grounded in a sensible theory of change, there is not currently credible, causal evidence on their effects (5, 7, 20, 24–26, 28).”
From A community response approach to mental health and substance abuse crises reduced crime (2022) · cites this paper as [7]
The Results (page unavailable) call shifting police responsibilities to other agencies an “unproven suggestion” and say its effects need evaluation, supporting the claim about alternative and community response models. The paper does not establish that credible causal evidence is lacking for police training or cooperation with health professionals; it discusses those approaches as potentially helpful. (LLM, conf=0.84)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
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References 43 · Cited by 199
- Authors
- Lum, C., Koper, C. S., & Wu, X.
- Affiliations
- George Mason University (US)
- Corresponding author
- Lum, Cynthia
- Venue
- Police Quarterly
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 2021-07-22
- Volume
- 25
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 255-280
- ISSN
- 1098-6111 (ISSN-L)
- 1552-745X
- OpenAlex
- W3183386601
- Cited by
- 199
- References
- 43
- Citations by year
- 2026: 24 · 2025: 37 · 2024: 42 · 2023: 59 · 2022: 33 · 2021: 4
- FWCI
- 114.65
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- hybrid
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Police Quarterly (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc)
- Funders
- Arnold Ventures
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Political Science and International Relations › Policing Practices and Perceptions
- Social Sciences › Law › Criminal Justice and Penology
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Crime Patterns and Interventions
- Keywords
- 911 calls, police workload, police reform, George Floyd protests, police-community relations, police resource allocation
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