Tag: Police and Race

One in 20 US homicides are committed by police – and the numbers aren’t falling | US policing | The Guardian

It is VERY IMPORTANT to keep in mind that this article has a single premise – police are bad. There I save you a lot of reading.

Now if you have an open mind and look at the evidence keep the following in mind as you read the article.

  • Offenders are accountable for their behavior.
  • Police react to offender’s behavior.
  • Police make mistakes and police make bad decisions under life and death conditions.
  • Unarmed people can kill.
  • It is lawful for police to protect themselves and others.
  • Police do not have to be shot at before they can use deadly force.
  • Police have to use more force than the offender to overcome the offender’s force.
  • Police use of force many times is not easy or pretty.
  • Disproportionate by race to it’s population does not equal racism.
  • There are many factors that drive police-citizen contacts.

Police killings of any sort account for nearly 5% of all homicides, with at least 1,192 people killed by law enforcement in 2022
— Read on http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/feb/15/us-homicides-committed-by-police-gun-violence

Police Use of Force and Racial Disparities during Traffic Stops – Public Policy Institute of California

PPIC research has found notable racial disparities in traffic stops—in both the likelihood of being stopped and the likelihood of a search, enforcement, intrusiveness, and/or use of force during that stop.
— Read on www.ppic.org/blog/police-use-of-force-and-racial-disparities-during-traffic-stops/

Home – Council on Policing Reforms & Race

On October 18, 2020, the National Policing Institute, formerly the National Police Foundation, announced the formation of the Council on Policing Reforms and Race, an independent initiative to support excellence in policing, address racial disparities, and build and enhance trust and legitimacy.

The Council is a majority African American-led nonpartisan initiative that will use research and evidence to consider and offer recommendations to resolve some of the most significant and pressing issues concerning policing reforms and race. In launching this effort, the Institute acknowledges the role that racism, bias, culture (societal and organizational), and patterns and practices have played in the deterioration of trust and respect between law enforcement and Black communities. The Institute will encourage the Council to offer commentary, recommendations, and solutions for addressing these issues.

While various national panels and blue-ribbon commissions have been put forth previously to address similar areas of concern, this effort is distinguished by bringing together a broad cross-section of perspectives, infusing what we know and don’t know from science in relation to these issues, elevating the voices of Black Americans working inside and outside of the policing profession.

Home – Council on Policing Reforms & Race
— Read on www.councilonpolicingreforms.org/

Driving While Black A Report on Racial Profiling Metro Nashville Police Department Traffic Stops

Our report shows that “driving while black” constitutes a unique series of risks, vulnerabilities, and dangers at the hands of the Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) that white drivers do not experience in the same way.

Upon reviewing MNPD’s traffic stop database, our report finds that:

• Between 2011-2015, MNPD conducted 7.7 times more traffic stops annually than the U.S. national average

• Between 2011-2015, MNPD made more stops of black people than there were black people 16 years old and over living in Davidson County

• Between 2011-2015, MNPD consistently and unnecessarily stopped and searched black drivers in predominantly black, Hispanic, and low-income communities at rates substantially higher than they did white drivers in predominantly middle to upper income communities

• MNPD consent searches are invasive and fail to yield incriminating evidence 88.4% of the time.

• Evidence of unlawful activity is found during searches of white drivers more often than in searches of black and Hispanic drivers

• Nearly 80% of all MNPD traffic stops in 2015 result in a warning, and, in traffic stops including a search of the vehicle or driver, between one-third and half result in a warning, which means hundreds of thousands of drivers are being stopped and searched unnecessarily every year

• Since 2012, Operation Safer Streets (OSS) has resulted in more than 58,000 vehicle stops and 11,000 arrests, the vast majority of which were concentrated in communities of color. More than 90% of OSS arrests were for misdemeanors, often for possession of small amounts of marijuana or driving without a license, and more than 80% of stops yielded no evidence that warranted arrest.

See the report HERE:

drivingwhileblacknashville.files.wordpress.com/2016/10/driving-while-black-gideons-army.pdf

The Misuse of Police Authority in Chicago – A Report

The Misuse of Police Authority in Chicago, a Report and Recommendations based on hearings before the Blue Ribbon Panel convened by the Honorable Ralph H. Metcalfe – Police Accountability Task Force, Chicago, Illinois
— Read on chicagopatf.org/2016/01/04/the-misuse-of-police-authority-in-chicago-a-report-and-recommendations-based-on-hearings-before-the-blue-ribbon-panel-convened-by-the-honorable-ralph-h-metcalfe/