Events

The Policing, Policy, and Philosophy Initiative (3PI) will host its second symposium on May 30, 2025. This virtual symposium will feature research at the intersection of policing and philosophy, with a particular interest in work that speaks to policy debates. All philosophical work on policing is welcome. Potential topics include but are not limited to police legitimacy, police’s role in a democratic society, police accountability, the moral implications of new police technologies, policing and racial justice, the ethics of police use of force, and police abolition.

Beyond offering opportunities for feedback on in-progress work and learning about new research, the symposium looks to build connections and community among scholars with philosophical interests in policing. Funding for the symposium is provided by the Penn State Rock Ethics Institute.

Papers accepted for the symposium will be considered for the 3PI Paper Prize, which comes with a $1,000 award. The prize committee will evaluate papers based on their originality in advancing philosophical debates on policing and their skill in translating insights from philosophy into concrete implications for policy. The paper awarded the 3PI Paper Prize will receive consideration for publication in the Journal of Public Policy.

Faculty, postdocs, graduate students, and independent scholars with advanced degrees are eligible to participate in the symposium and can apply by (1) submitting a paper and/or (2) requesting to be a panel discussant. Papers submitted for consideration should be anonymous and no more than 3,500 words (excluding abstract, notes, and references). Discussants will receive a small honorarium in appreciation of their service. To apply for either role, please visit the following link and apply by March 21, 2025: https://forms.gle/TJUWxhMBkJgHkzDCA. Notification decisions will be sent in April 2025.

Protests of the police are nothing new in the US. Throughout the 20th and 21st centuries, incidents of police brutality mobilized resistance, especially in marginalized communities that bear the brunt of policing’s harms. Protests then and now highlight policing at odds with basic values of justice, equity, respect, and harm reduction. Given history and recent events, is just policing that reflects these values possible? What public safety strategies, whether they involve the police or not, gives us the best chance to promote these values?

“Policing and Our Values” presented by the Policing, Policy, and Philosophy Initiative (3PI) brings together community leaders, public officials, lawyers, and scholars to explore these questions. The symposium on April 4 at the Chicago-Kent College of Law focuses on how our values and ethical commitments should inform two areas of policy: police deadly force and public safety strategies that complement and in some cases are alternatives to the police.

The symposium is co-sponsored by the Chicago-Kent College of Law, American Philosophical Association, and Penn State Rock Ethics Institute. It is open to the public, but registration is required. A complimentary lunch will be provided to attendees. For those seeking continuing legal education (CLE) credit, it is free for the first 50 registrants.

To attend the symposium, please register here.

3PI encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions, please contact Ben Jones at btj7@psu.edu or call 814-863-0314 at least one week prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

Many debates over policing are, at their heart, questions about ethics, justice, and politics. What are the professional and moral responsibilities of police in a democratic society? What rules should govern officers in using force and other aspects of their jobs? How do current forms of policing contribute to systemic injustice? What does accountability mean in the context of policing? What are the most promising strategies to promote public safety consistent with justice—and do they include police? Philosophy, in conversation with other fields, offers tools to advance our understanding of policing and its role.

The Policing, Policy, and Philosophy Initiative (3PI) will explore these and related questions at its inaugural symposium on Friday, March 1, 2024. This virtual event showcases research at the intersection of policing and philosophy, with particular interest in work that has direct relevance to policy. Funding for the symposium is provided by the American Philosophical Association, Penn State Rock Ethics Institute, and Penn State Department of Philosophy.

This virtual event is open to the public. To attend the symposium, please register here. Note: there will be one Zoom link for all three sessions of the symposium.

Among the papers featured at the symposium is the winner of the 3PI Best Paper Prize: “Police Interrogation and Fraudulent Epistemic Environments” by Luke William Hunt (University of Alabama). Hunt’s innovative analysis of deception in interrogation identifies moral hazards with the practice and explains how it can undermine police legitimacy.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions, please contact Ben Jones at btj7@psu.edu or call 814-863-0314 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

3PI Virtual Symposium Schedule (Friday, March 1)

10:30–11:30am EST: Prize Paper Presentation

• “Police Interrogation and Fraudulent Epistemic Environments” by Luke William Hunt (Associate Professor of Philosophy, University of Alabama)
• Discussant: Katerina Hadjimatheou (Senior Lecturer of Sociology, University of Essex)

12:00–1:30pm EST: Panel 1

• “Policing Best by Policing Least: A Non-Ideal Theory” by Vishnu Sridharan (Law and Philosophy Postdoctoral Fellow, UCLA)
• “The Retributivist and Republican Punishment of Police Misconduct” by Nicholas Goldrosen (PhD Student in Criminology, University of Cambridge)
• “Bellum and Police: St. Thomas Aquinas and Warrior Cops” by Patrick Toner (Associate Professor of Philosophy, Wake Forest University)
• Discussants: Jennifer Page (Assistant Professor of Political Theory, University of Zurich) and Kierstan Kaushal-Carter (Provost’s Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Pennsylvania)

1:45–3:15pm EST: Panel 2

• “The Irrationality of Racial Profiling” by Tiffany Gordon (PhD Student in Philosophy, Dalhousie University) and Tyler Hildebrand (Associate Professor of Philosophy, Dalhousie University)
• “On Property, Housing Necessity and the Policing of Urban Spaces” by Erika Brandl (PhD Student in Philosophy, University of Bergen)
• “Policing, Racial Bias, and the Moral Obligation to Intervene” by Nathan Lackey (PhD Student in Philosophy, University of Minnesota)
• Discussants: Amelia Wirts (Assistant Professor of Philosophy, University of Washington) and Kierstan Kaushal-Carter (Provost’s Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Pennsylvania)

With the American Philosophical Association and Public Philosophy Network, 3PI co-sponsored a webinar on policing. 3PI’s own Raff Donelson served as the moderator for the panel, which featured Didier Fassin, Rachel Harmon, Brandon Hogan, and Luke Hunt.