HomeMy WebLinkAbout09-28-1999 ICPD Reports/Memos MEMORANDUM
TO: Steve Atkins, City Manager
FROM: R.J. Winkelhake, Chief of Police
RE: OFFICER INITIATED TRAFFIC STOPS
DATE: September 14, 1999
The department began recording the race/ethnic background of individuals who
are stopped for traffic violations by officers of the Iowa City Police Department
beginning July 1, 1999. The method the Department has chosen to gather this
information is by way of the personal observation of the officer. We believe this
method is the least intrusive method to gather the data. At this point, I believe
the data being gathered is faidy reliable, but it must be validated through further
analysis. One issue which was identified was the entry in the group referred to
as O = Unknown. There was some confusion in between the officers and the
Emergency Communications personnel in early stages of data collection, but the
issue has been resolved to minimize such "unknown" entries..
At the present time information gathered which indicates the following seven
items of data:
The incident number
The officer
The gender of the driver
The race of the driver
The time of day
The date
The location
The results of the first sixty days (July 1, 1999 - August 31, 1999) are:
MALES FEMALES TOTAL
WHITE 1,093 657 1,750
BLACK 125 68 193
HISPANIC 34 12 46
ASIAN 54 26 80
OTHER 23 10 33
UNKNOWN 6 6 12
UNKNOWN RACE/GENDER 69
2,183
The objective of gathering this data is to learn more about the traffic stops being
made in Iowa City and to provide an opportunity for the officers of the
department to have a better view of this one area of the officers law enforcement
work. To determine what concerns, if any, were present; what training and
supervision may be necessary; correct any identified problems and lastly, to
ensure that all members of the motoring public are treated faidy by the Iowa City
Police Department.
When we look to draw conclusions from this very limited data, it is important to
have data analyzed and validated, as well as gathered over an extended period
of time. In my discussions with Mr. Robert Stewart, the Executive Director of
NOBLE (National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives) he
suggests one full year of data. Anything less would be of questionable value.
Mr. Stewart has been helpful in this undertaking and has made himself available
to us for future consultation.
I intend to contact an outside organization to become involved in the gathering,
validation and review of the data. An independent professional review will help
in developing conclusions for the Police Department.
A comprehensive review could include an in-depth review of the location data,
arrest data, search data, reason for stops, etc. The data gathered to date is just
the beginning step. The data gathered August 1, 1999 is believed to be more
reliable than the data gathered in the first few weeks of the project.
Additionally, as you know traffic enforcement has become a high priority
neighborhood issue. Therefore, in order to fulfill that current interest, meet the
requests for additional enforcement in selected neighborhoods, we can expect
more and more attention to be called to this issue. I believe we have taken good
first steps.
Copies of this report are available to the public upon request.
DEPARTMENT MEMORANDUM 99-28
TO: All Sworn Personnel
FROM: R.J. Winkelhake, Chief of Police ~(//)(b,/'
RE: TRAFFIC STOPS
DATE: June 21, 1999
Attached is a memo I sent to Steve Atkins reference a change in department policy.
Effective July 1, 1999 officers will be required to inform the Emergency Communications
Center of the race of the driver of the motor vehicle stopped by members of the
department.
The data will be recorded by the Emergency Communications Operator in the CAD call
entry screen. The fields to be utilized for this purpose will be Fields 39 and 40. These
two fields are called "Other Agency" but will be used for recording the gender and race
of the drivers involved in traffic stops. The Emergency Communications Operators will
record that data when the officer provides the information. The officer will provide the
data when the officer advises the Emergency Communications Operators of the
disposition of the stop (Example: Traffic warning - 16). If the officer does not provide
the data, the Emergency Communications Operator will ask for the data.
The location utilized for the data - is to allow retrieval of the data. The codes to be
used are as follows:
14 - Male White 24 - Female White
15 - Male Black 25 - Female Black
16 - Male Hispanic 26 - Female Hispanic
17 - Male Asian 27 - Female Asian
18 - Male Other 28 - Female Other
19 - Male Unknown 29 - Female Unknown
0 - Unknown
Note: 0 can be used in either race or sex field