NCJ Number
201677
Journal
Chief of Police Volume: 17 Issue: 3 Dated: May/June 2003 Pages: 21,24,25
Date Published
May 2003
Length
3 pages
Annotation
This article reviews some of the critical elements in a law enforcement agency's efforts to establish a holistic, solutions-oriented approach to addressing racial profiling.
Abstract
The chief law enforcement officer must first commit to the issue of racial profiling and then work with staff to ensure they are committed to the issue. Developing and implementing a strategic plan that supports a holistic, solution-focused approach to the issue best achieves this. An effective plan will have well-defined, desired outcomes pertinent to racial profiling. These outcomes will vary among agencies, depending on the environment; however, common goals may include risk reduction in terms of media exposure and litigation. Other goals may include the development of positive media exposure, the development of better working relationships with community groups, and increasing officer morale. Specific tasks that will be involved in eliminating racial profiling in agency work include the collection of data on officer-citizen interactions to determine whether members of minority groups are being stopped at a disproportionate rate compared with their travel on the jurisdiction's roads, identifying and preparing key and relevant stakeholders for involvement in the process of eliminating racial profiling, informing stakeholders about agency conclusions and activities pertinent to countering racial profiling, and measuring the effectiveness of the efforts undertaken against racial profiling. The latter involves developing goals that can be measured with such variables as complaints of police bias, officers' knowledge and attitudes based on testing, community satisfaction survey, and data on officer stops of citizens.