Examples Of Discrimination In Law Enforcement

The issue of race within the police force dates back to the 1967 President’s Commission on Law Enforcement and the Administration of Justice, which considered the lack of minority officers one of the central problems in policing at that time. Almost 50 years later and

The act of profiling is defined as the analysis of a person’s psychological and behavioral characteristics to help make generalizations/ assumptions about a person’s intent and or capability. An assumption is defined as something that has been accepted as being true without substantial evidence. These assumptions, then lead to what is known as racial profiling, which refers to a sort of discriminatory way in which an individual is targeted for suspicion in a crime based solely on that individual’s race, ethnicity, religion or national origin. Why make assumptions about a person without having substantial evidence? Why violate and/or humiliate an entire group of people based on an assumption? Having actual and factual data that has been analyzed

Racial Disparity in the criminal justice system is when a certain ethnic group that does not represent the majority of the population is in charge or holds more power within the system than other ethnic groups. A misrepresentation of ethnicity with the Criminal Justice System. This misrepresentation can lead to the assumption that people of different ethnic backgrounds and the same crime will be treated differently within the criminal justice system. But, in some cases this assumption becomes reality. This reality is what must change. This reality that White, Black, Hispanic and Asian criminals can and will be treated differently even though they have committed similar crimes must be done away with. How to go about it is the where the issue lies. Do you incarcerate more white criminals to help

Notably, the lack of minorities in law enforcement derives from distrust between minorities in communities and law enforcement. In detail, with more policing predicaments emerging, such as police brutality over the recent years, minorities have been more hesitant to join police force due to their

There are numerous issues that deal with the American criminal justice system, but the two I found most prominant that occur on a daily basis is the abuse from police officers and clear racism shown by the American criminal justice system. To begin, racism as we know is a prejudice directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that one’s own race is superior. In the criminal justice system African Americans are directly targeted and punished in a higher more aggressive way, than say someone who is caucasian and committed the same exact crime. Racism is more often than not, the motive for official misconduct. There are examples of racism from every known region in the United States, spanning across centuries from slavery to

From recent polls, it was gathered that eighty-eight percent of blacks agree they are treated unfair by law enforcement, and a fifty-nine percent of whites also agree blacks are treated unfairly (Dobson). This shows it is not only blacks who feel this way, but other races see it too. In a poll, the question asked was, “Have you been treated unfairly in dealing with police in the past thirty days because of your racial/ethnic background?” After viewing the results, it shows only three percent of whites said yes, while nineteen percent blacks said yes (Drash). From everything that people see from the results of all the polls, it is shown the relationship between police and minorities is

Racial profiling has become a worldwide epidemic. Within law enforcement circles and its practices, has become a contentious issue. It occurs every day, in cities and towns across the country, where law enforcement and private security target minorities without evidence of criminal activities. Law enforcement is responsible for humiliating and frightening these groups with: detentions, interrogations, and searches. It can be triggered based on perceived race, ethnicity, origin, or religion. Racial profiling is illegal, violating the U.S. Constitution’s equal protection under the law. Numerous legal debates and personal tensions over the legitimacy of such practices and its’ justifications, have caused notice for restoration and improvement

Courts are a major evaluative stage of the criminal justice system and we rely on these courts to determine our outcomes based on the crime that was committed. Today, there is more diversity of leadership in the court system but, race still plays a role in the outcome of the offender. This could range from petty crimes being committed like traffic infractions or facing the death penalty based on the race of the offender or victim. This paper will examine the three types of disparities that cause biased sentencing in the courts. The three types of disparities are race, social class, and gender and these all play a huge factor when making a decision based off an offender.

Despite training to avoid discrimination, officers may still rely on cultural stereotypes and act on their perceptions of a person 's characteristics (such as age, race or gender)” (National Institute of Justice, 2013).

When minority groups feel that they’re under constant suspicion, they’re less likely to trust police with information that can be vital to solving crimes. This is one reason some law enforcement groups oppose racial profiling. Research has shown that African Americans are more often stopped by the police than White Americans. Also, there have been cases where Hispanics, Arabs, Asian and even religious groups such as, Muslims being targeted. There have been some police departments that have created a non- racial profiling policy such as, The Houston Police Department, they have established a policy concerning the prohibition of racial profiling. Discrimination in any form, including racial profiling, is strictly prohibited and the department will take immediate and appropriate action to investigate allegations of discrimination. This policy applies to all members of the Houston Police Department both classified and non-classified. However, in other States there have not been any information on their attempt on preventing racial profiling in there department, because there have been on going cases about racial profiling, as of

Racial profiling distracts law enforcement agencies from using useful approaches. For example, the New York City law enforcement used an unethical approach of stop and frisk coupled with racial profiling generating a disproportionate of minorities arrested. In a 13-year period starting from

The performance of a police officer is always under a microscope especially when it comes to dealing with people from another race. There is also the idea that police officers use racial profiling to conduct and solve many of the crimes that are happening in their neighborhood. The racial profiling aspect is very sensitive and it can be difficult to determine if in reality it is happening because this is coming from someone else 's perception.

Black Americans are more than twice as likely as white Americans to be unarmed when they are shot and killed by police officers, according to a study published in the Journal of Criminology and Public Policy. In addition, the study finds that racial bias is a contributing factor (Schumaker). How does racial bias influence police brutality? Defined, “Police brutality is the use of excessive physical or verbal assault during police procedures, such as apprehending or interrogating a suspect. Deadly force is not always excessive force. However, when deadly force exceeds the force that is necessary to create a safe environment, it is considered police brutality.” The United States has an abhorrent history embracing racial relations. Police brutality has historically been perpetrated against individuals in lower socioeconomic levels and the social marginalized. It has been permitted against citizens who have participated in strikes during the late 1800’s and early 1900’s by spraying them down with hoses and attacking them with police dogs. This behavior has been motivated by racial stereotypes. Many police officers believe blacks are more violent than other races, and this image has been reflected in media quite often. These stereotypes are rooted in the sordid history of enslavement, genocide, and segregation. Although, stereotypes are not entirely the problem that encourages police brutality. Rampant discrimination and disparate treatment of certain minorities in the judicial

Living in the United States, Americans are living under the premises that citizens can live in a fair and equal state regardless of race, ethnicity, religion, or their national origin. But what happens when this is proven not to be true. Americans have a name for it when it is contrary to them not being treated equal because of race, ethnicity, religion, or national origin. It is called racial profiling; birthed out of criminal profiling. Racial profiling, therefore, is the involvement of law enforcement officers in a discriminatory manner targeting any individual based on race, ethnicity, religion, national origin for suspicion of a crime. It is also noteworthy that omission by law enforcement is a form of racial profiling. The ingredients for racial profiling then are law enforcement, race, targeting, suspicion, omission, and crime. Many innocent Americans are behind bars or dead because of racial profiling and the realization of the September 11 attacks has heightened the reactions of law enforcement against people of color and various religions. Although it is a much talk

For individual discrimination, it is mainly that through our personal experiences and lessons learned and received in the past, to prejudiced another person. At the same time, institutional discrimination usually produce prejudice to the most of large institutions and organizations for part of the race and ethnic. In current society, individual discrimination is often released in the color issue today; we often are isolated by our own color. Sometimes, people who the white drive in the cars are easier to get forgiveness and understanding of police officers, but for other color race, these people usually tend to be suspects by other people. On the other hand, institutional discrimination is mainly manifested in several areas: economy, education,