Pubdate: Thu, 25 Jan 2001 Source: Hartford Courant (CT) Copyright: 2001 The Hartford Courant Contact: http://www.hartfordcourant.com/ Forum: http://chat.courant.com/scripts/webx.exe Author: DAVE ALTIMARI And JACK DOLAN PROFILING: SEEKING CLARITY IN NEW DATA Connecticut's first-in-the-nation study of racial profiling by police across the state found no widespread problem, but critics on both sides of the issue called the findings released Wednesday misleading. RACIAL PROFILING Stephen M. Cox, a professor in the department of criminology and criminal justice at Central Connecticut State University, right, listens to state Sen. Alvin Penn, D-Bridgeport, describe being stopped by a police officer while driving home, in what he calls a racial profiling incident. Since Jan. 1, 2000, every police department has been required to fill out reports each time an officer stops a motorist, and send the reports to the chief state's attorney's office. The reports, 315,000 in all, recorded the driver's race, the type of stop and its outcome. "We did not find a pattern of racial profiling,'' Chief State's Attorney John M. Bailey said. "Minority drivers do not appear to be treated systematically any different than non-minority drivers.'' The report says that 12 percent of those stopped across the state were black, and it contrasted that number with 1990 Census data showing a black population in the state of 8 percent. Bailey acknowledged, that more recent estimates say the state's minority population is higher, but he said his researchers decided to go with the older census number because it was the only hard data available. Bailey said he will submit an updated report later this year, which will include new demographic data from the 2000 Census. The report released Wednesday covered traffic stops during the first six months of last year. Other potential pitfalls - all readily acknowledged by the study's authors - - include the fact that police officers filled out the reports anonymously, making it difficult to confirm the information in them, and officers were not allowed to ask motorists their race. Instead, they had to guess, which could skew the statistics, officials said. 'We did not find a pattern of racial profiling. Minority drivers do not appear to be treated any different than non-minority drivers.' John Bailey Chief state's attorney 'If you're African-American, you are three times more likely to get arrested, and I can't see how that isn't a problem.' Sen. Alvin Penn D-Bridgeport - -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The report also pointed out that the racial makeup of a town's traffic stops can be influenced by the presence of a shopping mall, casino, interstate highway or some other high-traffic factor. The town-by-town findings do not take those variables into account. Still, Central Connecticut State University Professor Stephen M. Cox, who was hired by the state to analyze the data, said that even with the outdated and potentially inaccurate information, he concluded "there really is no difference on why people are stopped'' in Connecticut. The report showed that white motorists who are stopped have a 3 percent chance of having their car searched, while blacks have a 7 percent chance and Hispanics a 9 percent chance. The data also indicate that a white motorist who is stopped has a 1 percent chance of being arrested, while blacks and Hispanics each have a 3 percent chance. Even though that makes it three times more likely that a nonwhite motorist will be arrested than a white motorist, Cox called the disparity insignificant when compared to smaller-scale studies elsewhere in the country. State Sen. Alvin Penn, D-Bridgeport, who sponsored the bill that led to the statewide study of motor vehicle stops, disagreed with Cox's conclusion. "If you're African American, you are three times more likely to get arrested, and I can't see how that isn't a problem,'' Penn said. "That's not a marginal number to me.'' Connecticut is the first state in the country to attempt a town-by-town analysis of motor vehicle stops to see if minorities are stopped more than whites. Only North Carolina and Tennessee are attempting similar studies, although Bailey said 17 states have contacted his office about Connecticut's program. National experts are keeping a close eye on the Connecticut study, because the town-by-town report is the first statistical look at the behavior of police in affluent suburbs, according to Gary Cordner, dean of the College of Justice and Safety at Eastern Kentucky University. Cordner recently completed a six-month study in San Diego that showed high rates of Hispanic and black motorists' cars were searched after they were stopped. "I think [the Connecticut study] is interesting because everyone else has done city studies, or the I-95 studies. One possibility is the police could see their job as patrolling the perimeter, keeping the outsiders out. I don't know if that happens, but it would be interesting to see," Cordner said. Some police bristle at any suggestion that suburban officers routinely target minority drivers. West Hartford Police Chief James Strillacci said some police officers fear the state's anti-profiling law assumes that all officers are racist. "I think officers were upset about it because it was tantamount to an accusation that they were doing something wrong,'' Strillacci said. "Most officers are trying to do their jobs. They're not trying to pick on anybody.'' The state law also required Bailey's office to investigate any complaints of racial profiling. Bailey said his office received 13 complaints, and 12 of those were dismissed. One complaint is still under investigation. Penn would like there to be more ways for racial profiling complaints to be filed. Currently, motorists must fill out a form that's available only on the chief state's attorney's Web site and at local police departments. "How many black people are going to go to the chief state's attorney's Web site or walk into the police station of the cop who just stopped them and file a complaint?'' Penn said. "I am going to suggest we leave complaint forms at the local NAACP offices and churches.'' Penn started the crusade to study racial profiling after he was stopped by Trumbull police for what he says was no apparent reason. During the first six months of the study released Wednesday, Trumbull police stopped 850 motorists, 16 percent of whom were black and 10 percent of whom were Hispanic. Blacks account for 1 percent and Hispanics 2 percent Trumbull's population. In addition, 29 percent of the vehicles searched in Trumbull belonged to blacks and 36 percent to Hispanics. Although the study found no widespread problems, certain towns showed unusually high percentages of minorities having their cars stopped or searched by police. In Middletown, 52 percent of the vehicles searched belonged to blacks and 5 percent Hispanics, while in Hamden 55 percent of the vehicles searched belonged to blacks and 16 percent Hispanics. Statewide, blacks accounted for 23 percent of those whose cars were searched and Hispanics accounted for 21 percent. In East Hartford, 30 percent of the motorists stopped were black and 16 percent were Hispanic. The statewide average for traffic stops was 12 percent black and 9 percent Hispanic. The racial breakdowns recorded by the Connecticut State Police, who patrol all of the state's highways as well as many of the rural towns, are nearly identical to the state population figures. Troopers stopped just over 98,000 vehicles, about 10 percent of those were black and 6 percent were Hispanics. They searched 2,559 vehicles, of which 15 percent were driven by blacks and 12 percent were driven by Hispanics. The state police will soon begin videotaping all traffic stops, which they say should ensure that racial profiling is not a problem. By 2002, every trooper's car will be equipped with two cameras, one in the rear window and one in the front window, that will record everything the trooper does on his shift. Troopers will also wear microphones on their uniforms, Public Safety Commissioner Arthur Spada has said. Cromwell Police Chief Anthony Salvadore, president of the Connecticut Police Chiefs Association, said the study gives law enforcement high marks. "There might be some problem individuals out there but there is no systematic profiling in Connecticut,'' Salvadore said. - --- MAP posted-by: Terry F