Gender and mental health status affect how police handle many incidents. Police sympathize with and only lecture some offenders. The presence of weapons or acts of resistance often result in police overreaction. The type of property involved in a property crime determines police response and investigatory effort. Activities initiated by police are followed up more than activities initiated by citizen complaint.
Police tend to become much more bureaucratic when witnesses, an audience, or the media are present.
Police tend to become lenient when the court and correctional systems are clogged. Police tend to become strict when the city needs revenue. Size and structure of the department controls individual discretion. Communities that have sufficient social service resources, like detox and mental health facilities, allow officers to use more nonarrest options. The way in which officers are summoned plays a role in how they will act when they get there.