In light of both the tragic death of Tyre Nichols in Memphis at the hands of black police officers and the mixed results of studies of Black same-race policing, this Article proposes a conceptual framework by which to better understand the utility of police diversity. The framework maps the relational possibilities among three factors: (i) the Black officer’s approach to same-race policing; (ii) the Black officer’s performance in the context of same-race policing; and (iii) the policing priorities of the Black communities the Black officer is taken to represent. Responsive to the conceptual framework for police diversity theory, the Article proposes that minority representation in the police department be valued largely along two fronts: (i) institutional representation in which the minority officer’s job performance is responsive to the preferences of the racial peer group, and (ii) racial equity in criminal procedures. But it argues that racial equity in criminal procedure should be expressly prioritized within police diversity theory given the prospect of tension between these two values. A normative theory of police diversity that prioritizes racially equitable criminal procedure above the preferences of minority-majority polities and, likewise, the physical safety of racially marginalized communities, affirms Fourth Amendment and Equal Protection principles. Moreover, it acknowledges the possibility that efforts at racial representation in the police department, if applied uncritically, can serve to perpetuate the prejudiced treatment of young minority men.
