MAPS FOR: Jurisdictions Collecting Data | Legislation | Litigation | Community Groups

Reporting and Analysis

Auditing

Any traffic stop study is severely undermined without a strong belief by both police personnel and the community that the data can be effectively audited. The first step in data auditing is the necessity that each data record has a unique identification number on each form or record. This identification will be used to track the data record as it goes into the field and as it is returned for analysis. It is not necessary for the unique identification on the data record to be linked with any individual officer identification.

Obviously the easiest way to audit data is for information about the individual officer making the traffic stop to be included in the data collection protocol. With this information, analysts can compare the traffic stop records with official records of traffic stops or citations. For a variety of reasons many jurisdictions choose not to include information about officer identification. Fortunately, it is still possible to conduct a thorough audit of the data without officer identification.

Without the officer identification an audit of the data can take place through a coordinated effort between the analyst and supervisors in the local jurisdiction. Supervisors can assist the auditing process by comparing the stop forms or Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) / Mobile Data Terminal (MDT) information for individual officers against other official records of the officers' daily activity such as stop logs or calls for service. This auditing procedure requires some investment on the part of the local agency in supervising the return and oversight of the data cards or CAD / MDT reports.

A final method of auditing can take place by verifying stop information with community members. If identifying information about the individual who was stopped, such as a license number, was included in the data collection procedure, the research team could conduct random samples of the individuals who were stopped and contact the individuals to spot check the accuracy of information recorded during the data collection.

Without information on either the officer or the individual stopped the analyst can still watch for a change in stop patterns in certain locations over time to spot check for unexplained drops or increase in stop activity. The analyst can also compare the information from traffic stop records that result in a citation or arrest against official documents such as the ticket or the arrest sheet. Whatever the auditing mechanism that is chosen, it is important to assure both the officers and the community that accurate and truthful data is a mandatory component of the study.

• Background and Current Data Collection Efforts
• Community and Civil Rights Initiatives
• Legislation and Litigation
• Planning, Training, and Implementation
• Reporting and Analysis
  • Introduction
  • Reports
  • Data Collection
  • Auditing
  • Benchmarks
  • Reporting
  • Problem Solving
• Library and Archives

ANALYSIS OF RACIAL DISPARITIES IN THE NEW YORK CITY POLICE DEPARTMENT'S STOP, QUESTION, AND FRISK PRACTICES

RAND Corporation

In 2006, the New York City Police Department (NYPD) stopped a half-million pedestrians for suspected criminal involvement. Raw statistics for these encounters suggest large racial disparities — 89 percent of the stops involved nonwhites. Do these statistics point to racial bias in police officers’ decisions to stop particular pedestrians? Do they indicate that officers are particularly intrusive when stopping nonwhites? The NYPD asked the RAND Center on Quality Policing (CQP) to help it understand this issue and identify recommendations for addressing potential problems. CQP researchers analyzed data on all street encounters between NYPD officers and pedestrians in 2006. They compared the racial distribution of stops to external benchmarks, attempts to construct what the racial distribution of the stopped pedestrians would have been if officers’ stop decisions had been racially unbiased. Then they compared each officer’s stopping patterns with an internal benchmark constructed from stops in similar circumstances made by other officers. Finally, they examined stop outcomes, assessing whether stopped white and nonwhite suspects have different rates of frisk, search, use of force, and arrest. They found small racial differences in these rates and make communication, recordkeeping, and training recommendations to the NYPD for improving police-pedestrian interactions.

ARIZONA: RACIAL PROFILING BY POLICE MUST BE STOPPED, PANEL SAYS

A civil-rights panel will recommend that Arizona police agencies take more steps to combat racial profiling after community leaders raised concerns. The recommendations could include better police training, mandatory data collection by police agencies to help detect patterns of racial profiling, and the creation of an independent citizen commission to investigate racial-profiling complaints.

MISSOURI: RACIAL PROFILING REPORT RELEASE

The Annual Racial Profiling Report of 2007 shows African Americans are more likely to get searched after being pulled over in Columbia. The state mandated the report in 2000 as a nationwide effort to provide transparency in police departments.

KANSAS: SENATE CONSIDERS RACIAL PROFILING BILL

In Topeka, Kansas a new bill could mean a difference in policing practices. The bill would make it illegal for law enforcement to use race as the sole factor in selecting which individuals are subject to routine investigatory activities. It would also create a task force on racial profiling. The bill would require law enforcement agencies to submit annual reports, and mandate two hours of racial profile training for officers. The Senate committee has yet to vote to advance the bill.

WEST VIRGINIA: RACIAL PROFILING STATE PROBLEM?

An ongoing study of whether racial profiling by police is a problem in West Virginia shows that black drivers across the state last year were 1 1/2 times more likely to be stopped than whites.Black drivers statewide were also twice as likely as white drivers to have their cars searched in those same traffic stops, the just-released report states.
The figures come from a statistical analysis of reports over a six-month period from nearly all law enforcement agencies in the state. The Statistical Analysis Center of the state Division of Criminal Justice Services is doing the study in response to a 2006 law. The study will continue this year, with a final report expected in 2009.

CALIFORNIA: HRC: POLICE 'PROFILING' DATA STILL NEEDED

The Human Relations Commission decided that Palo Alto police officers should continue collecting racial and gender data about individual traffic stops however only one, not two, reports per year should be generated. The change, which the commission suggested for a one-year trial period, should save the department about 200 hours a year.