No idea whether he's Black, White, or purple”

Colorblindness and cultural scripting in prosecution

Bibliographic Data

ID9681271
AuthorsRebecca Richardson (0000-0002-8626-8600, Florida International University, corresponding author)
Year2022
Volume60
Issue2
Pages237-262
Publication date2022-05-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueCriminology (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0011-1384 • E-ISSN: 1745-9125
PublisherWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1111/1745-9125.12296
OpenAlexW4200107578
LanguageEN
Citations received18
References cited54

Prosecutors maintain immense power over criminal case processing. Yet, they have not historically been a major target for reforms designed to foster equality and reduce racial disparity in criminal justice outcomes. Using in‐depth interviews with 47 line prosecutors, this study explores how prosecutors think about race in criminal justice, and what they believe their role should be in addressing racial disparities. Results show that prosecutors broadly embrace a colorblind approach to prosecution and argue that race should be disregarded in case processing. Their support for colorblind prosecution is reinforced by race‐neutral cultural scripts that can be linked to the social and operational realities of prosecutors’ work environment. These findings suggest that efforts to improve fairness in case processing will be more effective if they are accompanied by widespread prosecutorial culture change. Such efforts may also benefit from the consideration of structural features of the prosecutor's office that currently lead line agents to embrace colorblindness and reject a larger role in alleviating racial disparities

Color line · Criminal justice · Criminology · Economic Justice · Political science · Power (physics · Race (biology · Scripting language · Sociology · White (mutation · Computer Science · Crime Patterns and Interventions · Criminal Justice and Corrections Analysis · Gender Studies · Law · Policing Practices and Perceptions

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