- Title: Black drivers are six times more likely to be stopped in Chicago, report shows
- Date: 12th April 2024
- Summary: CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, UNITED STATES (APRIL 11, 2024) (REUTERS) CHICAGO POLICE SUV SPEEDING PAST WITH LIGHTS AND SIRENS ON (SOUNDBITE) (English) WILL BROWN, LIFELONG CHICAGOAN/WORKS AT A STORE ON THE BLOCK WHERE DEXTER REED JR. WAS KILLED BY CHICAGO POLICE, SAYING “Yeah, they just pull over random cars daily over here.” CHICAGO POLICE SUV WITH LIGHTS ON IN THE MIDDLE OF A BUSY
- Embargoed: 26th April 2024 16:40
- Keywords: ACCOUNTABILITY ACLU AFRICAN AMERICAN AFRICAN-AMERICAN AMERICA BLACK BRANDON BRUTALITY CAR CAUCASIAN CHI-TOWN CHICAGO COP COPS DEXTER DRIVE DRIVER DRIVERS EQUITY FIREARM FRISK GUN HISPANIC ILLINOIS IMPACT JOHNSON LATIN LATINA LATINO MIDWEST MOTOR MOTORIST MOTORISTS POLICE PULL OVER REED SEARCH SHOOT SHOOTING STOP TRAFFIC US USA VEHICLE VIOLENCE WHITE
- Location: CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, UNITED STATES; CICERO, ILLINOIS, UNITED STATES
- City: CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, UNITED STATES; CICERO, ILLINOIS, UNITED STATES
- Country: US
- Topics: Crime/Law/Justice,Crime,North America
- Reuters ID: LVA001463612042024RP1
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Amid the recent release of footage from a deadly traffic stop, where Chicago cops fired nearly 100 shots at a Black motorist in under a minute, a new report this month makes plain that the city's police disproportionately pulled over Black and Brown drivers in 2023.
“Citywide, Black drivers are six times more likely to be stopped, and Latino drivers are twice as likely to be stopped as white drivers,” said Loren Jones, director of criminal legal system at Impact for Equity, the Chicago-based nonprofit behind the ‘Chicago 2023 Traffic Stops Data Report’.
The report, released in April 2024, details how over half of all drivers stopped by Chicago police in 2023 were Black, despite African-Americans only making up 28.8% of the city’s population.
Only 13.6% of drivers stopped by Chicago cops were White, who account for 32.7% of Chicago’s population, according to the report.
“We are seeing widespread, excessive traffic stops that are concentrated in Black neighborhoods in the south and west sides of Chicago that lead to these environments of over-policing, stopping folks for minor violations, really breaking down that barrier of trust there that leads to an environment where things like tragic killings can happen, like Dexter Reed,” said Jones.
Four tactical Chicago police officers in plainclothes fired 96 shots at Reed in 41 seconds, after the 26-year-old opened fire on them during a traffic stop last month, according to a report from the city's civilian monitoring office, released on Tuesday (April 9).
Chicago police say the African-American driver was pulled over on suspicion of not wearing a seat belt.
The incident remains under investigation.
Impact For Equity’s report shows that nearly 73% of all traffic stops performed by Chicago police in 2023 were for minor violations, like improper license registration or a broken light.
27.4% of stops were for moving violations, like speeding and failure to stop at stop signs, according to the report.
Out of all traffic stops recorded, only 4.4% led to a citation, 2.2% led to an arrest, and a gun was recovered in just 0.5% of stops.
Jones said her organization is fighting to get Chicago police to put an end to traffic stops for minor violations, like the one that led to Reed’s death.
The American Civil Liberties Union, or ACLU, of Illinois sued the city of Chicago over the rise of discriminatory traffic stops in June of 2023.
“We’re seeing this incredible increase in the number of stops, coupled with the continued disparity in stops for Black and Brown drivers,” said Yohnka. “All of that led us to file a lawsuit last year.”
The ACLU’s suit is still pending, according to court documents.
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