NCJ Number
95186
Journal
Law and Policy Volume: 6 Issue: 3 Dated: (July 1984) Pages: 361-377
Date Published
1984
Length
17 pages
Annotation
A survey of two Wisconsin departments that regulate business -- the Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection (DATCP) and the Department of Industry, Labor, and Human Relations (DILHR) -- revealed a surprising number of threats and assaults made against inspectors in the course of enforcing regulatory provisions.
Abstract
Questionnaires were mailed to all current and some former inspectors in the DATCP's Food Division, all current inspectors in its other divisions, and a sample of current inspectors in the DILHR. Overall, almost 50 percent of the 151 respondents had been threatened or assaulted at least once, and 79 percent of the food inspectors and 67 percent of the plant industry inspectors reported three or more incidents. More than 30 percent of the incidents described by the inspectors were categorized as more serious because they posed an imminent threat of bodily harm. The average annual rate per 100 food inspectors for these more serious assaults was 3.83 for 1978-82, compared to a rate of 10.6 assaults per 100 Wisconsin police officers for the same period. In most cases, assailants appeared to be venting hostility against the inspectors, showing contempt for the entire regulatory program, and attempting to intimidate inspectors into softening their enforcement. Farm inspections and the exercise of summary authority appeared to increase the likelihood of threats and assaults. Inspectors in all agencies felt inadequately prepared to deal with these situations and expressed strong interest in receiving additional training in self-defense and controlling threatening situations. Inspectors typically did not report such incidents to the police, but did report them to their supervisors, who also appeared unprepared and sometimes unwilling to respond. Tables, footnotes, and 10 references are supplied. (Author abstract modified)