America has a problem with police legitimacy. This has been true for some years, but the past month has underscored the point. Understandably, the savage beating of Tyre Nichols has led to renewed calls for police reform, and clearly many people do need to be held accountable for that shocking incident. “Police reform” can mean many things, however. Does it merely imply that officers should be more carefully trained, and then held to account when they make serious mistakes? Does it mean that they should be fewer in number, or does it imply a radical transformation in the way Americans think about policing?
