...Driving while black, that is.A study from the Transportation Department found that last year, black and Latino drivers pulled over in Illinois were more likely to get a ticket or undergo a vehicle search, compared with whites.
...obvious, you say?
Well, here's the rub: Not only were minority drivers involved in traffic stops at a higher rate than their portion of the state population would indicate - accounting for 12 percent more traffic stops than would be expected - but drugs and weapons were more likely to be found in the cars of WHITE drivers.
Among other findings:
-Fifty-five percent of white drivers got tickets after being pulled over, versus 65 percent of Hispanic drivers and 62 percent of black drivers.
-Non-white drivers were stopped for a median time of 15 minutes and 60 percent received a ticket. Whites, on the other hand, were pulled over for a median time of 12 minutes, with 56 percent receiving a ticket.
-Police conducted searches on 36 out of 1,000 minorities stopped, and 12 out of 1,000 whites.
While this isn't earth-shattering news to me, as I lean on the cynical side in terms of my view of law enforcement, it does make evident some "swept under the rug" tendencies.
Also, reading other people's thoughts on the issue is pretty shocking to me. While I concede that some make valuable points - Why focus solely on race? Why not the crime that led to the traffic stop too? (valid, but see above point on drugs/weapons) - I was shocked to see how many people came to the defense of police. (Check these comments on ABC's website: http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=news/local/illinois&id=8249671) Some of these, particularly the one that can "guarantee that 75 percent were illegal aliens," only re-sweep this under the carpet.
In another twist, the ACLU is pushing for state police to stop conducting consent searches. A lawyer for the ACLU said consent searchers are sure to be biased against minorities and that the practice is too subjective. Here, I'm between a rock and a hard place. This study suggests that yes, minorities do bear the brunt of these searches, but the searches themselves do serve a purpose in terms of stopping criminal activity. I vote in favor of addressing the study's findings first, and factoring in some of the variables the pro-cop commenters brought in, before we get rid of searches. Maybe we can attack the "subjectivity" of the practice without gutting it entirely?
So, Mayor Rahm, maybe you can add this to your to-do list? That is, after you lay off hundreds of city workers and build those bike lanes...
Photo Credit: AOL Autos/WMMJ - MAJIC 102.3 (Washington, D.C.)
