Driving while black became a mock infraction when racial profiling became a public concern. However, a report that is now online shows that might be more true if a motorist was driving through LaDue as opposed to Wentzville.
Click image to go to report online
Every time someone gets pulled over, their race goes into a database. Ten years after the law mandating the data be recorded, the information is now online.
Attorney General Chris Koster says the Missouri Vehicle Stops Report report shows some discouraging statistics.
He says when the report was first issued ten years ago, black drivers were 30 percent more likely to get pulled over than whites. Now, the most current report says blacks are 70 percent more likely to get pulled over. Hispanics are more likely to get searched, when in fact, white drivers are more likely to actually have contraband in their cars, he says, such as drugs or weapons.
Koster says the searchable database online provides transparency to the public, information for the state and a useful tool for law enforcement agencies, who can now not only see their own statistics for pulling people over, but other communities’.
Jessica Machetta reports [Download / listen Mp3, 1:20 min.]
Jessica interviews Koster about Traffic Stops report [4:51 min.]
Koster gives us step-by-step instructions on how to search the database [7:06 min.]
