The Program on Poverty and Governance (PovGov) at Stanford’s Center on Democracy, Development, and the Rule of Law received a $4.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs to launch a research project to examine the nature of police corruption in Mexico and make recommendations for reforming that country’s law enforcement institutions.

This new phase of research is expanding on the four-year project that PovGov has led to evaluate the use of police lethal force in Rio de Janeiro’s most dangerous slums. Over the course of three years, the new project will partner with law enforcement in Mexico to professionalize and improve its capacity, while strengthening the rule of law and enhancing transparency in a country rocked by insecurity and violence.

The project is led by PovGov Director and Principal Investigator Beatriz Magaloni together with co-investigator Alberto Diaz-Cayeros. Both have conducted cutting-edge research on crime and violence in Brazil, Mexico, and the United States at Stanford’s Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, where they launched the International Crime and Violence Lab.

To read more about the new Mexico project, please click here.