Police release traffic stop study

July 5, 2006 -- The Chicago Police Department released its second analysis of Traffic Stop Statistical Study on Monday that relates to all elements related to traffic stops the Chicago Police Department has dealt with over the past year.

The study revealed that police stopped minority drivers at a rate of 1.14 percent higher than Chicago's minority driving population as estimated by Northwestern University analysts compared to 1.15 percent in 2004.

"This data shows us that the Chicago Police Department engages in aggressive crime control strategies while continuing its commitment to assure bias-based policing does not occur," Chicago Police Superintendent Philip J. Cline said. "We have now established a baseline for comparison to date gathered over the next three years. We are relying on experts in the field of data collection and analysis to help us better understand what this information tells us."

Non-minority drivers stopped were let go with a verbal warning at an 11.8 percent clip and minorities received only a verbal warning 19.2 percent of the time.

Of the 205,966 traffic stops, 147,007 were minorities. African-Americans had 147,007 stops and Hispanics had 48,983 stopped.

Of the total stops 10.9 percent were of consent vehicle searches of minority drivers and 3 percent consent vehicle searches of non-minority drivers.

"We owe our progress to a continuing commitment to community policing and to a renewed effort to deploy resources in areas most prone to violent crime," Cline said.

The Chicago Police Department encourages individuals who feel they were wrongly stopped by police to file a complaint so it can be fully investigated.

"It's my commitment and the commitment of the Chicago Police Department to send a clear message to our 13,500 police officers and our three million residents that crime fighting is based on crime data, not race," Cline said.

Sun-Times News Group Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2006

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