The Power of the Badge: Sheriffs and Inequality in the United States

A sobering exploration of the near unchecked power of sheriffs in the United States. Across the United States, more than 3,000 sheriffs occupy a unique position in the US political and legal systems. Elected by voters—usually in low-visibility, noncompetitive elections—sheriffs oversee more than a third of law enforcement employees and control almost all local jails. They have the power to both set and administer policies, and they can imprison, harm, and even kill members of their communities. Yet, they enjoy a degree of autonomy not seen by other political officeholders. The Power of the Badge offers an unprecedented, data-rich look into the politics of the office and its effects on local communities. Emily M. Farris and Mirya R. Holman draw on two surveys of sheriffs taken nearly a decade apart, as well as election data, case studies, and administrative data to show how a volatile combination of authority and autonomy has created an environment where sheriffs rarely change; elections seldom create meaningful accountability; employees, budgets, and jails can be used for political gains; marginalized populations can be punished; and reforms fail. Farris and Holman also track the increasingly close linkages between sheriffs and right-wing radical groups in an era of high partisanship and intra-federal conflict.

Table of Contents:
Foreword and Acknowledgments Introduction: The Power of the Badge Chapter One: Filling in an Incomplete History of Sheriffs Chapter Two: Electing Sheriffs Chapter Three: Sheriffs’ Authority as Elected Officials Chapter Four: Inequality from Autonomy and Authority Chapter Five: The Radicalization of County Sheriffs Chapter Six: Sheriffs, Inequality, and the Possibility of Accountability Data and Methods Appendix Results Appendix Notes References Index

About the Author :
Emily M. Farris is associate professor of political science and core faculty of comparative race and ethnic studies at Texas Christian University. She has been quoted or appeared in the New York Times, Vox, the Guardian, and the Atlantic. Mirya R. Holman is associate professor at the Hobby School of Public Affairs at the University of Houston. She is the author of Women in Politics in the American City and coeditor of Good Reasons to Run. Her work has been discussed in the New York Times, the Atlantic, and NPR.

Review :
"The anomalous and isolated status of sheriffs is reflected in media coverage and academic research as well. Individual sheriffs like the notorious Joe Arpaio, former sheriff of Maricopa County, Arizona, may gain significant local or even national attention, but consistent, systemic scrutiny is rare. So The Power of the Badge, a new book by political scientists Emily M. Farris and Mirya R. Holman, is long overdue." "In addition to focusing on the far-right extremist views these sheriffs espouse, Farris and Holman draw attention to the role sheriffs play in corrections. They point out that sheriffs have a significant role in ‘carceral policymaking’ through their control over the size and capacity of county jails…certainly worth a read for anyone worried about far-right extremism, overreach of law enforcement, or the dangers that law enforcement poses to democracy." "The authors have created the leading treatise on sheriffs in the American carceral system with their thorough research (including two national surveys of sheriffs in 2012 and 2021) and pointed analysis of how the official power of many sheriffs helps establish and then conceal in plain sight the class inequality and racial bias in detention, jailing, and punishment. . . . This carefully reported and reasoned study of sheriffs is an important and necessary addition to the body of academic work, and should further the hope for reform as the impetus started by the public reaction to the murder of George Floyd dwindles." "In this sweeping treatise, Farris and Holman, offer a must-read account of American sheriffs’ immense power, propensity for corruption and extremism, demographic and ideological unrepresentativeness, and insulated authority. The Power of the Badge demonstrates both the importance of studying sheriffs and the ways in which the office is a lens into the profitability of the carceral state, the maintenance of racial hierarchy, conditions for electoral accountability, and the operation of local politics and policy more broadly." “The Power of the Badge is a groundbreaking political analysis of sheriffs and the ways they govern communities throughout the US. Connecting the past to the present and drawing on original survey research, Farris and Holman provide readers with an incisive, empirically grounded study of politics and governance in local arenas that scholars have long ignored. Engaging and accessible, The Power of the Badge deserves to be read by a wide audience of experts, policymakers, students, and members of the public.”