Which statement reflects a benefit of procedural justice?

• A. The more you do it, the more natural it becomes
• B. People will comply with the law, even when you are not around
• C. It guarantees arrests will decrease
• D. It has no impact on community relations

Answer: (B)

Procedural justice shows that when police interactions are fair in how they are conducted, people view the entire system as legitimate. That sense of legitimacy leads to voluntary compliance with the law, even when officers aren’t present or actively watching. In other words, people internalize the authority of the law and choose to follow it because they believe the process is fair, not just because they fear punishment.

This is why the statement about compliance extending beyond direct enforcement is the best reflect of procedural justice. It captures the reputational and long-term effect: fairness builds trust, which translates into people behaving lawfully in everyday life, not only during police encounters.

The other ideas don’t fit as well. Simply saying the practice becomes more natural over time isn’t the core benefit; profitability of arrests isn’t guaranteed by fair processes, and claiming no impact on community relations ignores the well-documented improvement in trust and cooperation that fair procedures foster.