Rock Ethics Institute

(All times are Eastern Standard Time.)

Policing, Policy, and Philosophy Initiative (3PI) Virtual Symposium

Friday, March 1, 2024

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 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)