| Summary: | Objective: to study changes inenforcement of low-level offenses and felonies in the City of St. Louis, Missouri after the high-profile events in Ferguson.Methods: dialectical approach to the cognition of social phenomena which uses the following research methods based on it: general scientific (analysis, synthesis, induction) and specific scientific methods (formal-legal, systemic, comparative-legal, sociological).Results: as a result of several highly publicized incidents of police killing unarmed Black suspects, many contend that American police are in the midst of a crisis. Police have faced high levels of public scrutiny that some argue has stifled police activities and led to spikes in violent crime. This phenomenon - coined in the aftermath of the police killing of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri - has become widely known as the Ferguson Effect. This study uses seven years of data and time series analysis to assess whether the events in Ferguson were associated with a reduction in arrests for felonies and low-level offenses in the nearby City of St. Louis, Missouri.Scientific novelty: it is shown that there was an initial reduction in low-level arrests of Whites and Blacks in the wake of Ferguson. Enforcement of misdemeanors and ordinance violations then increased and returned to expected levels, but only for Blacks. Post-Ferguson, felony arrests initially dropped for Blacks, but not Whites, and then climbed for both groups. This work adds to the burgeoning literature on police responses in the wake of a high-profile shooting.Practical significance: the main provisions and conclusions of the article can be used in scientific, educational and law enforcement activities when considering issues related to prevention and elimination crime.
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