By RIA ROEBUCK JOSEPH
THE CENTER SQUARE CONTRIBUTOR
(The Center Square) – The Racial and Identity Profiling Advisory Board (RIPA) released its sixth report on issues of police profiling. Whites and Blacks were a shrinking share of those stopped by police while the Hispanic share of stops grew 9% since the 2021 report. Blacks remained the most likely to be searched, detained and handcuffed after a stop by wide margins. Blacks were also the most likely to face use of force by police and the group most likely to face no action at all after a stop.
The Jan.1 2023 report analyzes stop data collected by 58 law enforcement agencies from Jan. 1 2021 to Dec. 31 2021. The focus of the report was “The Mental Health Impacts of Being Policed on Communities Impacted by Racial and Identity Profiling.”
Analysts looked at millions of vehicular, bicycle and pedestrian stops providing a broad view of policing. The collection of the data required police to record perceived demographic information that included race or ethnicity, gender, age, disability status, English fluency, and LGBT identity.
Co-Chair of the Board and Director of Police Practices at the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California, Melanie Ochoa stated, “In addition to providing a detailed analysis of the policing activities of 58 law enforcement agencies, this year’s report provides much-needed context on the negative physical, emotional, and mental health consequences experienced by students and the broader communities that are most often the subject of those activities.”
RIPA analysis included the number of stops for 2021; search rates; outcome of the stop; use of force rates; and population comparison. Key findings on the stop data showed:
– Hispanic at 42.4% was the largest group stopped by police;
– Males at 72.1% represented the majority;
– Most common reason for a stop was traffic violation at 86.8%;
– Black youth 15-17 were searched six times the rate of white youth of the same age;
– Blacks were 1.24 times more likely to have force used against them during a stop than others;
– Blacks represented the largest group against which no action was taken at 13.2%.
Ripa Board members reviewed studies that suggest black individuals living in urban areas “experience high rates of distress, a sense of injustice, feelings of hopelessness, and even feelings of dehumanization.”
As a result, the board suggested that racial and identity profiling be viewed as a significant public health issue by policymakers and health officials because of the level of anxiety and distress police interactions can induce.
“California is leading the nation in its effort to collect data on police-citizen interactions and to foster transparency and make progress towards fair, equitable, effective policing. Data collected under RIPA provides important information to the public, to legislators, and to law enforcement to guide policy and practice throughout the state,” said Steven Raphael, Co-Chair of the Board and Professor of Public Policy at UC Berkeley.
In a supplement to the report the board’s remedial recommendations included, the elimination of all pretextual stops and follow-up searches, a ban on consensual or supervision searches in traffic stops, prohibition of questions related to probation, parole, or supervision status with few exceptions, and elimination of the requirement for a signed advisory with reference to criminal sanctions before the acceptance of a civilian complaint (against police).
Special provisions for youth were also suggested for statements young offenders may make that could be used against them in criminal proceedings and physical and developmental differences in youth when it comes to the use of force.
