Tag: Police and Race

The Systemic Racism Project London Police Service

Executive Summary

Context of the Report

The impetus behind this report was the death of George Floyd at the hands of a police officer in the United States, triggering global protests against police use of force. In response to the public reaction, many police organizations across North America are now reflecting on their treatment of people of color and devising measures to improve the relationship.

The London Police Service is one of the first few police organizations in Canada that have voluntarily undertaken a research project on systemic racism to better serve the culturally and ethnically diverse community of London, Ontario.

Research Objectives

The specific objectives of the project were:

To identify whether service gaps/differences exist during police interactions with White versus the Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) community members of London, Ontario.

To determine whether any systemic barriers exist within the LPS that might impact the professional growth and development of BIPOC members; and

To conduct an Employment Systems Review to determine whether the current policies and procedures followed by the LPS are equitable and fair to all members of the LPS.

Get the report HERE

Unspeakable Truths about Racial Inequality in America | Manhattan Institute

I am a black American intellectual living in an age of persistent racial inequality in my country. As a black man, I feel compelled to represent the interests of “my people.” But that reference is not unambiguous. As an intellectual, I feel that I must seek out the truth and speak such truths as I am […]
— Read on manhattan.institute/article/unspeakable-truths-about-racial-inequality-in-america-2

Do digital technologies reduce racially biased reporting? Evidence from NYPD administrative data | PNAS

Recent work has emphasized the disproportionate bias faced by minorities when interacting with law enforcement. However, research on the topic has been hampered by biased sampling in administrative data, namely that records of police interactions with citizens only reflect information on the civilians that police elect to investigate, and not civilians that police observe but do not investigate. In this work, we address a related bias in administrative police data which has received less empirical attention, namely reporting biases around investigations that have taken place. Further, we investigate whether digital monitoring tools help mitigate this reporting bias. To do so, we examine changes in reports of interactions between law enforcement and citizens in the wake of the New York City Police Department’s replacement of analog memo books with mobile smartphones. Results from a staggered difference in differences estimation indicate a significant increase in reports of citizen stops once the new smartphones are deployed.
— Read on www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2402375121

A Study of Racially Disparate Outcomes in the Los Angeles Police Department

Abstract: This report analyzes pedestrian and motor vehicle stops of the Los
Angeles Police Department over a one-year period: July 2003 to June 2004. We find
prima facie evidence that African Americans and Hispanics are over-stopped, over-
frisked, over-searched, and over-arrested. After controlling for violent and property crime
rates in specific LAPD reporting districts, as well as a range of other variables, we find
that:

  • Per 10,000 residents, the black stop rate is 3,400 stops higher than the white stop
  • rate, and the Hispanic stop rate is almost 360 stops higher.
  • Relative to stopped whites, stopped blacks are 127% more likely and stopped
  • Hispanics are 43% more likely to be frisked.
  • Relative to stopped whites, stopped blacks are 76% more likely and stopped
  • Hispanics are 16% more likely to be searched.
  • Relative to stopped whites, stopped blacks are 29% more likely and stopped
  • Hispanics are 32% more likely to be arrested.

All of these disparities are statistically significant (p < .01). The findings of racial
disparity are supported by ancillary analyses of investigative outcomes and officer race.
We find that frisks and searches are systematically less productive when conducted on
blacks and Hispanics than when conducted on whites:

  • Frisked African Americans are 42.3% less likely to be found with a weapon than
  • frisked whites and that frisked Hispanics are 31.8% less likely to have a weapon
  • than frisked non-Hispanic whites.
  • Consensual searches of blacks are 37.0% less likely to uncover weapons, 23.7%
  • less likely to uncover drugs and 25.4% less likely to uncover anything else.
  • Consensual searches of Hispanics similarly are 32.8% less likely to uncover
  • weapons, 34.3% less likely to uncover drugs and 12.3% less likely to uncover
  • anything else.


It is implausible that higher frisk and search rates are justified by higher minority
criminality, when these frisks and searches are substantially less likely to uncover
weapons, drugs or other types of contraband. We also find that the black arrest disparity
was 9 percentage points lower when the stopping officer was black than when the
stopping officer was not black. Similarly, the Hispanic arrest disparity was 7 percentage
points lower when the stopping officer was Hispanic than when the stopping officer was
a non-Hispanic white. Taken as a whole, these results justify further investigation and
corrective action.

Get a .PDF copy of the report HERE

Police Reform | San Francisco Police Department

The San Francisco Police Department is in the midst of a transformational endeavor that reflects our commitment to the principle of safety with respect and aspires to make SFPD a national model of 21st century policing. Initially launched in 2016 as the Collaborative Reform Initiative (or CRI), SFPD’s quest for continual improvement has grown to include Mayor London Breed’s ambitious Police Reform Roadmap and our department’s Racial Equity and Inclusion Action Plan.
— Read on www.sanfranciscopolice.org/your-sfpd/police-reform

Get a copy of the 432 page report HERE