Alcohol arrest records cannot be read as a neutral census of who drank or supplied liquor.
The existence of selection effects does not make court records useless; interpretation requires corroborating local evidence.
Ask who was exposed to detection, who was protected, and which activities generated records before comparing groups.
Researcher synthesis grounded in attributed McGirr passages; partial-source review.
Idea
Alcohol arrest records cannot be read as a neutral census of who drank or supplied liquor.
Why it matters
Ask who was exposed to detection, who was protected, and which activities generated records before comparing groups.
Source reasoning
McGirr describes differing racial and ethnic arrest patterns across localities, women’s small-scale supply operations, and the vulnerability of marginal operators compared with major suppliers. Local inclusion in the trade and selective surveillance both shaped the record.
Boundary
The existence of selection effects does not make court records useless; interpretation requires corroborating local evidence.
Connections
