PRESIDENTIAL ORDER ON POLICE STOPS

Federal agencies must collect data on who they detain and why

WASHINGTON -- President Clinton on Wednesday directed federal law
enforcement agencies to collect information on the race, ethnicity and
gender of the people they detain for questioning, a move aimed at developing
data needed to determine whether they unfairly target minorities for
scrutiny.

Speaking at a Justice Department conference, Clinton said he had ordered the
collection of detailed data on who federal law enforcement agencies are
detaining and why. The department will then analyze the information to
determine whether the agencies engage in racial profiling, the practice of
targeting people for police examination based on their race or ethnicity.

"Racial profiling is in fact the opposite of good police work, where actions
are based on hard facts, not stereotypes," Clinton said. "It is wrong, it is
destructive, and it must stop."

The presidential order comes amid mounting criticism of aggressive police
tactics by civil rights leaders, and a day after the conviction of a second
New York City police officer in the brutal beating of Haitian immigrant
Abner Louima. While crime is down nationwide, a national report released
last week by the Justice Department showed that minorities still are
significantly less satisfied with local law enforcement than whites.

Clinton's directive marks the first time he has waded so decisively into the
issue of racial profiling, the subject of sharp disagreement between civil
rights leaders and law enforcement authorities. While civil rights leaders
have long complained about racial profiling, citing a thick file of mostly
anecdotal evidence, law enforcement officials dismiss the complaints as more
perception than fact.

Clinton said developing more detailed information about police stops can
bridge that gap. "We all have an obligation to move beyond anecdotes to find
out who is being stopped and why," said Clinton.

The presidential order applies only to federal law enforcement agencies,
which typically come into contact with the public far less frequently than
do state and local police forces.

Already, some federal agencies are collecting the kind of data that would be
required by the presidential order. Last month, the U.S. Customs service
began systematically collecting racial and ethnic data of the people
searched by its agents, amid widespread allegations of racial profiling. The
agency has about 12 lawsuits pending, most alleging that it unfairly targets
minorities for searches.

"We needed this information in order for us to get a handle on those
complaints," said Customs Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly.

In his remarks, Clinton also called on state and local police forces, which
operate outside federal jurisdiction, to begin collecting information about
who is being detained and why. Local law enforcement officials generally
oppose such data collection, calling it a waste of police resources and a
hindrance to fighting crime.

"I don't know what purpose is going to be served by law enforcement
officials recording your race, your sex, and your age," said Robert Scully,
president of the National Association of Police Organizations.