Mediate or litigate: An evaluation of citizen and police officer perspectives on the use of mediation to resolve citizen-police conflict in Trinidad and Tobago

Abstract

Given the confrontational nature of citizen-police interactions, conflict between both groups is inevitable. On one hand, it is argued that citizen-police conflict and complaints against the police must be properly ventilated; however, on the other hand, it is argued that existing dispute resolution mechanisms are biased in favor of the police. With this in mind, police departments and community residents are increasingly seeking alternative mechanisms to resolve citizen-police conflicts as well as citizen complaints against police officers and mediation has emerged as a forerunner. Using a quantitative approach, this exploratory study concurrently evaluated citizen and police officer perspectives regarding the role of mediation as an alternative to judicial and other legal based mechanisms to resolve citizen-police conflicts in Trinidad and Tobago. The study is premised on ‘islandness’ and the findings indicate that generally, both citizens and police officers are willing to utilize mediation to resolve citizen-police disputes, however, there are some disparities over the issue by gender. The paper concludes by advocating for a complaints management system that includes mediation within a consultative framework focused of behavioral improvements to be implemented within the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service.