RACIAL PROFILING DISCUSSED

Dallas Police Unsure Of Problem's Extent

Dallas Police Department executives and police association representatives
want to eliminate racial profiling and educate officers about the issue,
but they say they haven't decided how to achieve those goals or whether
racial profiling is occurring in Dallas.

Discussion has centered on whether the department should collect data on
the race and ethnicity of everyone who is stopped, to determine whether
minorities are stopped more often. Another suggestion was to have officers
hand business cards to everyone who is stopped but not ticketed or arrested.

But the card idea was discarded, police association representatives say,
and most don't like the idea of collecting data. Departments in three major
Texas cities - Houston, Austin and Arlington - have decided to record the
race and ethnicity of those stopped by police.

Dallas police officials declined to discuss their plans in detail, saying
they have not been completed and approved by Police Chief Terrell Bolton.

"It's obvious we haven't experienced the levels of complaints that other
jurisdictions have had because we have an excellent relationship with all
communities," said Deputy Chief Ron Waldrop, who oversees the internal
affairs division. "The philosophy of the department is that it won't be
tolerated."

Opponents of racial profiling say the only sure way to find out whether
minorities are unfairly stopped because of their skin color is to record
the race or ethnicity of everyone who is stopped by police.

Across the country, the American Civil Liberties Union has sought reports
of incidents of racial profiling and discriminatory police practices.

The group wants local and state police agencies to keep records of the race
and ethnicity of anyone who is stopped by police.

"What they need to do is start keeping statistics," said Michael Linz, a
board member and ACLU attorney in Dallas. "What possible excuse is there
for not keeping those records?"

State Sen. Royce West, D-Dallas, is drafting a bill for the 2001 Texas
Legislature to combat racial profiling. He says the only way to determine
whether there's a problem is to collect and analyze data.

"There needs to be a database to document whether a particular group is
being pulled over more or searched more than others," Mr. West said.

Dallas police association representatives agree that racial profiling is
wrong and should be stopped but disagree on the extent of the problem in
the city and how it should be attacked.

"I think it's a good start and it indicates the department is taking a
proactive approach," Sgt. Thomas Glover, president of the Texas Peace
Officers Association, said about the talks.

Some association leaders, including the Texas Peace Officers Association
and the Latino Police Officers Association, said collecting data might not
be the answer.

The Dallas Police Association, the city's largest police organization, with
2,000 members, says the department should work to end racial profiling but
that it opposes keeping statistics. The group also criticized the idea of
handing out business cards.

"I believe racial profiling is wrong and should not be tolerated," said
Senior Cpl. James Parnell, vice president of the Dallas Police Association
who attended the meetings discussing profiling. "This is not a problem that
is sweeping the department. I don't think we have a huge problem."

Some members of the Dallas Police Patrolmen's Union said profiling was more
widespread than department officials want to admit.

"Yes, there is a problem," said Officer Michael Walton, a black officer and
member of the Police Patrolmen's Union who attended departmental meetings
on the issue. "We don't have the numbers to say that, but just look at the
color of the people in city court. ... You see a lot of Hispanics and
blacks there."

Opponents say keeping statistics would discourage officers from making
legitimate stops for fear of being accused of profiling.

"I foresee that once you start keeping records, officers are going to be
thinking twice about making stops," Cpl. Parnell said. "They're going to
sit there and let someone go because they don't want to be labeled."

Mr. Linz of the ACLU said the Dallas Police Association's objections, which
are in line with the views of the International Chiefs of Police
Association, are a "lame excuse."

"That will even out when all those officers in the rich white sections make
the same number of stops," Mr. Linz said.

Even if the Dallas Police Department does not voluntarily begin to keep
statistics, state or federal legislation may ultimately require it.

The bill that Mr. West plans to file would require Texas law enforcement
agencies to collect data, including the race and ethnicity of each driver
stopped.

Similar legislation was introduced in Congress last year and could be filed
again next year. The "Traffic Stops Statistics Act" would have required the

U.S. Justice Department to conduct a study based on information voluntarily
submitted by police agencies.

At least seven states have adopted legislation requiring law enforcement
agencies to collect data, and about 200 police departments nationwide
voluntarily do so.

"I think Texas needs to be in the forefront of dealing with this," Mr. West
said.

Mr. West said he plans to meet with police chiefs from agencies across the
state to discuss racial profiling and how to best coordinate an effort to
stop it.

"What I want to do is have a system in place that makes sense," Mr. West
said. "We need to figure out, where should the information go? Should there
be a state depository? There are a myriad of issues."

Minority communities have long complained that officers stop people based
on skin color. Some agencies have responded by conducting studies searching
for evidence of racial profiling.

In January, San Diego police officers voluntarily began collecting data for
each stop. Law enforcement experts think the report is the first
comprehensive study by a major metropolitan police department.

A six-month status report showed that blacks and Hispanics were stopped
more often than white or Asian drivers. Once they were stopped, blacks and
Hispanics were more likely to be arrested or searched, the report said.

The Texas Department of Public Safety and the Houston and Arlington police
departments have adopted similar data-collection efforts.

According to the DPS, which started collecting data in March, Hispanics and
blacks were twice as likely to be searched as whites.

Arlington police started gathering information in September and will
analyze the data in February, said Sgt. James Hawthorne, a department
spokesman.

"This program was not generated because there were any kind of complaints,"
Sgt. Hawthorne said. "Our chief recognized that this was a national issue,
and we looked at our department internally and realized we needed to be in
a position to respond to critics."

Arlington officers record the gender and race of the driver, whether a
citation was issued, the reason for the stop and whether the driver lives
in the city.

Sgt. Hawthorne said officers have supported the study because it takes only
a few seconds to record the additional information.

Officers enter the five symbols when they file their computerized reports
or can call in the information, Sgt. Hawthorne said.

"We're always trying to stay on the forefront on all issues, and this is
just one of them," he said. "We face them instead of sticking our head in
the sand."