OFFICER PARTIALLY CLEARED IN RACIALLY CHARGED CASE

A black Miami-Dade police major who accused white deputies of stopping him
because he is black was convicted Friday in Orlando, Fla., of resisting
arrest but acquitted of battery charges.

Aaron Campbell said he was stopped because his race and his Miami-Dade
license plate fit the profile that Orlando deputies use to spot drug
suspects.

"There are entirely too many citizens who are subjected to this kind of
thing and surrender their rights" Campbell said outside court.

Orange County, Fla., sheriff's deputies denied using racial profiles during
the April 1997 stop. They said Campbell was pulled over because he changed
lanes improperly and because part of his license plate was obscured.

However, a judge concluded during the trial that the stop was illegal.