CCW holder killed reaching for ID.

[ponderingturtle]

Good point ... historical accurate example.

It is a myth that people openly carried guns in the old west in town. That is pure hollywood.

 

[AdamSK]

You don't need to concentrate on a single year for Ferguson

From 2000 to 2015 there were 58054 Blacks stopped and 14844 Whites

6229 Blacks were searched and
921 Whites

Which I make as being almost twice as likely to search a car driven by a black as a white.

10.73% Black
6.20% White

Can we shave off the part of the population that is above a certain income level here? Typically cops spend time in poorer neighborhoods. If you posit what would be a reasonable income threshold we can look at how the search numbers reflect only blacks and whites below that threshold.

 

[AdamSK]

It is a myth that people openly carried guns in the old west in town. That is pure hollywood.

Let's be clear - people openly carried guns into town, and then were told to check their guns at the stable or with the sheriff until they left town.

Castile's situation, where he armed while driving, would be analogous to being armed while riding between towns - which it was universally accepted that you would be.

 

[ponderingturtle]

Let's be clear - people openly carried guns into town, and then were told to check their guns at the stable or with the sheriff until they left town.

Castile's situation, where he armed while driving, would be analogous to being armed while riding between towns - which it was universally accepted that you would be.

Maybe, towns were a lot smaller then for one. It is the Hollywood version that is determining how laws get written not history. People love the idea of carrying guns on their hip while going out drinking like their favorite cowboys did in the movies and that is what gets the laws written.

 

[AdamSK]

Maybe, towns were a lot smaller then for one. It is the Hollywood version that is determining how laws get written not history. People love the idea of carrying guns on their hip while going out drinking like their favorite cowboys did in the movies and that is what gets the laws written.

Yep, and there were cases where the Cowboys did this - because "Cowboys" was the term for violent outlaws.

 

[jimbob]

Can we shave off the part of the population that is above a certain income level here? Typically cops spend time in poorer neighborhoods. If you posit what would be a reasonable income threshold we can look at how the search numbers reflect only blacks and whites below that threshold.

The DoJ report did that. It also controlled for type of stop - see spoiler footnote #39
Pg 64

Pursuant to Missouri state law on racial profiling, Mo. Rev. Stat. § 590.650, FPD officers are required to collect race and other data during every traffic stop. While some law enforcement agencies collect more comprehensive data to identify and stem racial profiling, this information is sufficient to show that FPD practices exert a racially disparate impact along several dimensions.

FPD reported 11,610 vehicle stops between October 2012 and October 2014. African Americans accounted for 85%, or 9,875, of those stops, despite making up only 67% of the population. White individuals made up 15%, or 1,735, of stops during that period, despite representing 29% of the population. These differences indicate that FPD traffic stop practices may disparately impact black drivers.³⁹

39 While there are limitations to using basic population data as a benchmark when evaluating whether there are racial disparities in vehicle stops, it is sufficiently reliable here. In fact, in Ferguson, black drivers might account for less of the driving pool than would be expected from overall population rates because a lower proportion of blacks than whites is at or above the minimum driving age. See 2009-2013 5-Year American Community Survey, U.S. Census Bureau (2015) (showing higher proportion of black population in under-15 and under-19 age categories than white population). Ferguson officials have told us that they believe that black drivers account for more of the driving pool than their 67% share of the population because the driving pool also includes drivers traveling from neighboring municipalities—many of which have higher black populations than Ferguson. Our investigation casts doubt upon that claim. An analysis of zip-code data from the 53,850 summonses FPD issued from January 1, 2009 to October 14, 2014, shows that the African-American makeup for all zip codes receiving a summons—weighted by population size and the number of summonses received by people from that zip code—is 63%. Thus, there is substantial reason to believe that the share of drivers in Ferguson who are black is in fact lower than population data suggests.

Even setting aside the question of whether there are racial disparities in FPD’s traffic stop practices, however, the data collected during those stops reliably shows statistically significant racial disparities in the outcomes people receive after being stopped. Unlike with vehicle stops, assessing the disparate impact of post-stop outcomes—such as the rate at which stops result in citations, searches, or arrests—is not dependent on population data or on assumptions about differential offending rates by race; instead, the enforcement actions imposed against stopped black drivers are compared directly to the enforcement actions imposed against stopped white drivers.

In Ferguson, traffic stops of black drivers are more likely to lead to searches, citations, and arrests than are stops of white drivers. Black people are significantly more likely to be searched during a traffic stop than white people. From October 2012 to October 2014, 11% of stopped black drivers were searched, whereas only 5% of stopped white drivers were searched.

Despite being searched at higher rates, African Americans are 26% less likely to have contraband found on them than whites: 24% of searches of African Americans resulted in a contraband finding, whereas 30% of searches of whites resulted in a contraband finding. This disparity exists even after controlling for the type of search conducted, whether a search incident to arrest, a consent search, or a search predicated on reasonable suspicion. The lower rate at which officers find contraband when searching African Americans indicates either that officers’ suspicion of criminal wrongdoing is less likely to be accurate when interacting with African Americans or that officers are more likely to search African Americans without any suspicion of criminal wrongdoing. Either explanation suggests bias, whether explicit or implicit.⁴⁰

40 Assessing contraband or “hit rates” is a generally accepted practice in the field of criminology to “operationaliz[e] the concept of ‘intent to discriminate.’” The test shows “bias against a protected group if the success rate of searches on that group is lower than on another group.” Nicola Persico & Petra Todd, The Hit Rates Test for Racial Bias in Motor-Vehicle Searches, 25 Justice Quarterly 37, 52 (2008). Indeed, as noted below, in assessing whether racially disparate impact is motivated by discriminatory intent for Equal Protection Clause purposes, disparity can itself provide probative evidence of discriminatory intent.

This lower hit rate for African Americans also underscores that this disparate enforcement practice is ineffective.

Other, more subtle indicators likewise show meaningful disparities in FPD’s search practices: of the 31 Terry stop searches FPD conducted during this period between October 2012 to October 2014, 30 were of black individuals; of the 103 times FPD asked both the driver and passenger to exit a vehicle during a search, the searched individuals were black in 95 cases; and, while only one search of a white person lasted more than half an hour (1% of all searches of white drivers), 59 searches of African Americans lasted that long (5% of all searches of black drivers).

Of all stopped black drivers, 91%, or 8,987, received citations, while 87%, or 1,501, of all stopped white drivers received a citation.⁴¹

41 As noted above, African Americans received 90% of all citations issued by FPD from October 2012 to July 2014. This data shows that 86% of people receiving citations following an FPD traffic stop between October 2012 and October 2014 were African American.

891 stopped black drivers—10% of all stopped black drivers—were arrested as a result of the stop, whereas only 63 stopped white drivers—4% of all stopped white drivers—were arrested. This disparity is explainable in large part by the high number of black individuals arrested for outstanding municipal warrants issued for missed court payments and appearances. As we discuss below, African Americans are more likely to have warrants issued against them than whites and are more likely to be arrested for an outstanding warrant than their white counterparts. Notably, on 14 occasions FPD listed the only reason for an arrest following a traffic stop as “resisting arrest.” In all 14 of those cases, the person arrested was black.
These disparities in the outcomes that result from traffic stops remain even after regression analysis is used to control for non-race-based variables, including driver age; gender; the assignment of the officer making the stop; disparities in officer behavior; and the stated reason the stop was initiated. Upon accounting for differences in those variables, African Americans remained 2.07 times more likely to be searched; 2.00 times more likely to receive a citation; and 2.37 times more likely to be arrested than other stopped individuals. Each of these disparities is statistically significant and would occur by chance less than one time in 1,000.⁴²

42 It is generally accepted practice in the field of statistics to consider any result that would occur by chance less than five times out of 100 to be statistically significant.

The odds of these disparities occurring by chance together are significantly lower still.

Pg 5

These disparities are also present in FPD’s use of force. Nearly 90% of documented force used by FPD officers was used against African Americans. In every canine bite incident for which racial information is available, the person bitten was African American.

Municipal court practices likewise cause disproportionate harm to African Americans. African Americans are 68% less likely than others to have their cases dismissed by the court, and are more likely to have their cases last longer and result in more required court encounters. African Americans are at least 50% more likely to have their cases lead to an arrest warrant, and accounted for 92% of cases in which an arrest warrant was issued by the Ferguson Municipal Court in 2013. Available data show that, of those actually arrested by FPD only because of an outstanding municipal warrant, 96% are African American.

Our investigation indicates that this disproportionate burden on African Americans cannot be explained by any difference in the rate at which people of different races violate the law. Rather, our investigation has revealed that these disparities occur, at least in part, because of unlawful bias against and stereotypes about African Americans. We have found substantial evidence of racial bias among police and court staff in Ferguson. For example, we discovered emails circulated by police supervisors and court staff that stereotype racial minorities as criminals, including one email that joked about an abortion by an African-American woman being a means of crime control.
City officials have frequently asserted that the harsh and disparate results of Ferguson’s law enforcement system do not indicate problems with police or court practices, but instead reflect a pervasive lack of “personal responsibility” among “certain segments” of the community. Our investigation has found that the practices about which area residents have complained are in fact unconstitutional and unduly harsh. But the City’s personal-responsibility refrain is telling: it reflects many of the same racial stereotypes found in the emails between police and court supervisors. This evidence of bias and stereotyping, together with evidence that Ferguson has long recognized but failed to correct the consistent racial disparities caused by its police and court practices, demonstrates that the discriminatory effects of Ferguson’s conduct are driven at least in part by discriminatory intent in violation of the Fourteenth Amendment.

I've highlighted this because of the following on pg 74

c. Evidence of Racial Stereotyping

Several Ferguson officials told us during our investigation that it is a lack of “personal responsibility” among African-American members of the Ferguson community that causes African Americans to experience disproportionate harm under Ferguson’s approach to law enforcement. Our investigation suggests that this explanation is at odd with the facts. While there are people of all races who may lack personal responsibility, the harm of Ferguson’s approach to law enforcement is largely due to the myriad systemic deficiencies discussed above. Our investigation revealed African Americans making extraordinary efforts to pay off expensive tickets for minor, often unfairly charged, violations, despite systemic obstacles to resolving those tickets. While our investigation did not indicate that African Americans are disproportionately irresponsible, it did reveal that, as the above emails reflect, some Ferguson decision makers hold negative stereotypes about African Americans, and lack of personal responsibility is one of them. Application of this stereotype furthers the disproportionate impact of Ferguson’s police and court practices. It causes court and police decision makers to discredit African Americans’ explanations for not being able to pay tickets and allows officials to disown the harms of Ferguson’s law enforcement practices.

The common practice among Ferguson officials of writing off tickets further evidences a double standard grounded in racial stereotyping. Even as Ferguson City officials maintain the harmful stereotype that black individuals lack personal responsibility—and continue to cite this lack of personal responsibility as the cause of the disparate impact of Ferguson’s practices—white City officials condone a striking lack of personal responsibility among themselves and their friends. Court records and emails show City officials, including the Municipal Judge, the Court Clerk, and FPD supervisors assisting friends, colleagues, acquaintances, and themselves in eliminating citations, fines, and fees. For example:

 In August 2014, the Court Clerk emailed Municipal Judge Brockmeyer a copy of a Failure to Appear notice for a speeding violation issued by the City of Breckenridge, and asked: “[FPD patrol supervisor] came to me this morning, could you please take [care] of this for him in Breckenridge?” The Judge replied: “Sure.” Judge Brockmeyer also serves as Municipal Judge in Breckenridge.
 In October 2013, Judge Brockmeyer sent Ferguson’s Prosecuting Attorney an email with the subject line “City of Hazelwood vs. Ronald Brockmeyer.” The Judge wrote: “Pursuant to our conversation, attached please find the red light camera ticket received by the undersigned. I would appreciate it if you would please see to it that this ticket is dismissed.” The Prosecuting Attorney, who also serves as prosecuting attorney in Hazelwood, responded: “I worked on red light matters today and dismissed the ticket that you sent over. Since I entered that into the system today, you may or may not get a second notice – you can just ignore that.”

 In August 2013, an FPD patrol supervisor wrote an email entitled “Oops” to the Prosecuting Attorney regarding a ticket his relative received in another municipality for traveling 59 miles per hour in a 40 miles-per-hour zone, noting “[h]aving it dismissed would be a blessing.” The Prosecuting Attorney responded that the prosecutor of that other municipality promised to nolle pros the ticket. The supervisor responded with appreciation, noting that the dismissal “[c]ouldn’t have come at a better time.”
 Also in August 2013, Ferguson’s Mayor emailed the Prosecuting Attorney about a parking ticket received by an employee of a non-profit day camp for which the Mayor sometimes volunteers. The Mayor wrote that the person “shouldn’t have left his car unattended there, but it was an honest mistake” and stated, “I would hate for him to have to pay for this, can you help?” The Prosecuting Attorney forwarded the email to the Court Clerk, instructing her to “NP [nolle prosequi, or not prosecute] this parking ticket.”

Relevant to this discussion about use of force

Pg 78

FPD also has not significantly altered its use-of-force tactics, even though FPD records make clear that current force decisions disparately impact black suspects, and that officers appear to assess threat differently depending upon the race of the suspect. FPD, for example, has not reviewed or revised its canine program, even though available records show that canine officers have exclusively set their dogs against black individuals, often in cases where doing so was not justified by the danger presented. In many incidents in which officers used significant levels of force, the facts as described by the officers themselves did not appear to support the force used, especially in light of the fact that less severe tactics likely would have been equally effective. In some of these incidents, law enforcement experts with whom we consulted could find no explanation other than race to explain the severe tactics used.

During our investigation, FPD officials told us that their police tactics are responsive to the scenario at hand. But records suggest that, where a suspect or group of suspects is white, FPD applies a different calculus, typically resulting in a more measured law enforcement response. In one 2012 incident, for example, officers reported responding to a fight in progress at a local bar that involved white suspects. Officers reported encountering “40-50 people actively fighting, throwing bottles and glasses, as well as chairs.” The report noted that “one subject had his ear bitten off.” While the responding officers reported using force, they only used “minimal baton and flashlight strikes as well as fists, muscling techniques and knee strikes.” While the report states that “due to the amount of subjects fighting, no physical arrests were possible,” it notes also that four subjects were brought to the station for “safekeeping.” While we have found other evidence that FPD later issued a wanted for two individuals as a result of the incident, FPD’s response stands in stark contrast to the actions officers describe taking in many incidents involving black suspects, some of which we earlier described.

Based on this evidence, it is apparent that FPD requires better training, limits on officer discretion, increased supervision, and more robust accountability systems, not only to ensure that officers act in accordance with the Fourth Amendment, but with the Fourteenth Amendment as well. FPD has failed to take any such corrective action, and instead has actively endorsed and encouraged the perpetuation of the practices that have led to such stark disparities. This, together with the totality of the facts that we have found, evidences that those practices exist, at least in part, on account of an unconstitutional discriminatory purpose. See Feeney, 442 U.S. at 279 n.24 (noting that the discriminatory intent inquiry is “practical,” because what “any official entity is ‘up to’ may be plain from the results its actions achieve, or the results they avoid”).

Compare this to pg 34, for example:

d. FPD Use of Force Often Results from Unlawful Arrest and Officer Escalation

A defining aspect of FPD’s pattern of excessive force is the extent to which force results from unlawful stops and arrests, and from officer escalation of incidents. Too often, officers overstep their authority by stopping individuals without reasonable suspicion and arresting without probable cause. Officers frequently compound the harm by using excessive force to effect the unlawful police action. Individuals encountering police under these circumstances are confused and surprised to find themselves being detained. They decline to stop or try to walk away, believing it within their rights to do so. They pull away incredulously, or respond with anger. Officers tend to respond to these reactions with force.

In January 2013, a patrol sergeant stopped an African-American man after he saw the man talk to an individual in a truck and then walk away. The sergeant detained the man, although he did not articulate any reasonable suspicion that criminal activity was afoot. When the man declined to answer questions or submit to a frisk—which the sergeant sought to execute despite articulating no reason to believe the man was armed—the sergeant grabbed the man by the belt, drew his ECW, and ordered the man to comply. The man crossed his arms and objected that he had not done anything wrong. Video captured by the ECW’s built-in camera shows that the man made no aggressive movement toward the officer. The sergeant fired the ECW, applying a five-second cycle of electricity and causing the man to fall to the ground. The sergeant almost immediately applied the ECW again, which he later justified in his report by claiming that the man tried to stand up. The video makes clear, however, that the man never tried to stand—he only writhed in pain on the ground. The video also shows that the sergeant applied the ECW nearly continuously for 20 seconds, longer than represented in his report. The man was charged with Failure to Comply and Resisting Arrest, but no independent criminal violation.

In a January 2014 incident, officers attempted to arrest a young African-American man for trespassing on his girlfriend’s grandparents’ property, even though the man had been invited into the home by the girlfriend. According to officers, he resisted arrest, requiring several officers to subdue him. Seven officers repeatedly struck and used their ECWs against the subject, who was 5’8” and 170 pounds. The young man suffered head lacerations with significant bleeding.

In the above examples, force resulted from temporary detentions or attempted arrests for which officers lacked legal authority. Force at times appeared to be used as punishment for non-compliance with an order that lacked legal authority. Even where FPD officers have legal grounds to stop or arrest, however, they frequently take actions that ratchet up tensions and needlessly escalate the situation to the point that they feel force is necessary. One illustrative instance from October 2012 began as a purported check on a pedestrian’s well-being and ended with the man being taken to the ground, drive-stunned twice, and arrested for Manner of Walking in Roadway and Failure to Comply. In that case, an African-American man was walking after midnight in the outer lane of West Florissant Avenue when an officer asked him to stop. The officer reported that he believed the man might be under the influence of an “impairing substance.” When the man, who was 5’5” and 135 pounds, kept walking, the officer grabbed his arm; when the man pulled away, the officer forced him to the ground. Then, for reasons not articulated in the officer’s report, the officer decided to handcuff the man, applying his ECW in drive-stun mode twice, reportedly because the man would not provide his hand for cuffing. The man was arrested but there is no indication in the report that he was in fact impaired or indeed doing anything other than walking down the street when approached by the officer.
In November 2011, officers stopped a car for speeding. The two African-American women inside exited the car and vocally objected to the stop. They were told to get back in the car. When the woman in the passenger seat got out a second time, an officer announced she was under arrest for Failure to Comply. This decision escalated into a use of force. According to the officers, the woman swung her arms and legs, although apparently not at anyone, and then stiffened her body. An officer responded by drive-stunning her in the leg. The woman was charged with Failure to Comply and Resisting Arrest.
As these examples demonstrate, a significant number of the documented use-of-force incidents involve charges of Failure to Comply and Resisting Arrest only. This means that officers who claim to act based on reasonable suspicion or probable cause of a crime either are wrong much of the time or do not have an adequate legal basis for many stops and arrests in the first place. Cf. Lewis v. City of New Orleans, 415 U.S. 130, 136 (1974) (Powell, J., concurring) (cautioning that an overbroad code ordinance “tends to be invoked only where there is no other valid basis for arresting an objectionable or suspicious person” and that the “opportunity for abuse . . . is self-evident”). This pattern is a telltale sign of officer escalation and a strong indicator that the use of force was avoidable.

It's hard not to quote the entire 102 pages - there is plenty more evidence in the rest of it.

It can be found as a link from the following webpage

https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/just...civil-rights-investigations-ferguson-missouri

 

[Upchurch]

https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/just...civil-rights-investigations-ferguson-missouri

That report is simultaneously one of the most thorough and one of the most hand-waved-away findings of fact, probably ever.

 

[Mumbles]

That report is simultaneously one of the most thorough and one of the most hand-waved-away findings of fact, probably ever.

Indeed. That was one of the major problems in Ferguson - the people there had strong reason to distrust their police and municipal courts, even before the Mike Brown shooting and the subsequent police siege that played out in front of the world - and that received a number of it's own slaps from federal judges.

 

[jimbob]

Indeed. That was one of the major problems in Ferguson - the people there had strong reason to distrust their police and municipal courts, even before the Mike Brown shooting and the subsequent police siege that played out in front of the world - and that received a number of it's own slaps from federal judges.

And there is little reason to suppose that Ferguson is anything other than typical of hundreds of other police forces in the US.

 

[quadraginta]

Can we shave off the part of the population that is above a certain income level here? Typically cops spend time in poorer neighborhoods. If you posit what would be a reasonable income threshold we can look at how the search numbers reflect only blacks and whites below that threshold.

I don't see why we should.

Part of the problem is the privilege and immunity which wealth confers.

In Ferguson most of that wealth is in the hands of whites. As the report very clearly demonstrates that wealth has quite overtly gained preferential treatment.

 

[Noztradamus]

Good point ... historical accurate example.

Actually the historical accurate example is Shootout on the Vacant Lot on Fremont Street.

 

[quadraginta]

Maybe, towns were a lot smaller then for one. It is the Hollywood version that is determining how laws get written not history. People love the idea of carrying guns on their hip while going out drinking like their favorite cowboys did in the movies and that is what gets the laws written.

And among those favorite movies were ones where the heroes (Earp Bros., et. al.) engaged in their most well known battle ...

... against Cowboys* who came into town and refused to surrender their weapons.

I suppose the irony is lost on those Second Amendment extremists who get their history lessons from cable TV reruns.

(The capital "C" isn't a typo. The Clantons and friends were members of a loosely organized group known as the Cochise County Cowboys^WP. The name wasn't intended as a compliment.

 

[Mumbles]

And there is little reason to suppose that Ferguson is anything other than typical of hundreds of other police forces in the US.

I seem to recall Goldie Taylor (who brought the Mike Brown shooting to my attention on Twitter) calling for similar investigations into every other small-town police force in the area.

I'm not sure how realistic that would be, though - in particular, I don't know how the DoJ chooses to investigate any particular police department.

 

[Ron Swanson]

It is a myth that people openly carried guns in the old west in town. That is pure hollywood.

Of course ... perhaps I watch old westerns too much

Yes that's right, open carry of firearms in town was not common (and often illegal), certainly no guns would be open carried inside almost all saloons ...

BUT there were MANY firearms sold at the time to the public ... and out of town it was common to keep firearms handy when working on the range or even while just traveling.

 

[Ron Swanson]

I remember at least one of the old Clint Eastwood movies ... all the characters had to check their guns (like coat checking) at a building (sheriff's office?) as soon as they got into town.

 

[lobosrul]

I remember at least one of the old Clint Eastwood movies ... all the characters had to check their guns (like coat checking) at a building (sheriff's office?) as soon as they got into town.

Probably Unforgiven. I've seen a whole bunch of westerns where that was the case though.

Slightly OT but it was illegal in Texas at the state level to conceal carry going waaaay back. My uncle-in-law was telling a story about how his great grand father was thrown in prison for a long time for concealed carry. Which he did because he had been severely harassed for the "crime" of being German during WW1.

 

[ponderingturtle]

Of course ... perhaps I watch old westerns too much

Yes that's right, open carry of firearms in town was not common (and often illegal), certainly no guns would be open carried inside almost all saloons ...

BUT there were MANY firearms sold at the time to the public ... and out of town it was common to keep firearms handy when working on the range or even while just traveling.

And it was all concealed carry, and pocket pistols and the like. Also a lot of concealed Bowie knives, which were not all that big so as to fit in a pocket.

 

[ponderingturtle]

Probably Unforgiven. I've seen a whole bunch of westerns where that was the case though.

Slightly OT but it was illegal in Texas at the state level to conceal carry going waaaay back. My uncle-in-law was telling a story about how his great grand father was thrown in prison for a long time for concealed carry. Which he did because he had been severely harassed for the "crime" of being German during WW1.

Better than in WWII where they rounded up and locked up Germans. Mostly members of the German American Bund(american Nazi party) but still.

 

[Ron Swanson]

And it was all concealed carry, and pocket pistols and the like. Also a lot of concealed Bowie knives, which were not all that big so as to fit in a pocket.

Yes that's the phrase ... 'pocket pistols' were popular

 

[lobosrul]

Better than in WWII where they rounded up and locked up Germans. Mostly members of the German American Bund(american Nazi party) but still.

Eh, I think we showed considerable restraint on locking up Germans during WW2, or people who actively supported the Nazi's. I believe it was pretty much confined to just citizens of Germans, not immigrants. He was a naturalized American.