Stop Question And Frisk Case Study

Improved Essays
The stop, question and frisk policy emerged from the case of Terry v. Ohio was designed to stop and search individuals based upon reasonable suspicion of an experienced police officer that a criminal activity might be occurring. Yet, the discretions granted to law enforcement agencies have been abused as the enforcement tactics are racially biased toward minority groups. Past analyses showed that police would further determined whether their suspicions are reasonable enough to constitute a stop if the suspect was a Caucasian rather than an African American. Racially discriminatory enforcement of the stop and frisk has important policy implication as race is often viewed as an important factor of suspicion by the police rather than the actual

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    In the article “Is Stop-and-Frisk Worth It?” by Daniel Bergner, two officers intend on searching people based on the events at the certain location. Instances such as these prove to a certain extent that it is not based on race but more of the activity…

    • 410 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Stop And Frisk Essay

    • 1068 Words
    • 5 Pages

    By contrast, the areas with the least stops tend to be ones with lots of white people: Midtown, Little Italy, Chelsea and Central Park in Manhattan..” This quote shows that stop and frisk reports are different according to the type of demographics within a particular area of New York City. The areas with the most stops are areas with high populations of African American and Latino people, especially poor African American and Latino people. This shows that stop and frisk is targeting a certain type of look when thinking about or looking for a suspicious person. This detainment of people after a stop and frisk are increasing crime rates in these areas.…

    • 1068 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    It is just a form of racial profiling because over half the percent of people they stop are African Americans. We are suspected to have some form of a weapon on contraband, or us and if it just happened that someone they stopped and frisked did they would get charged. In these cases whites never seem to cause suspicious among cops. It is easier for police to just be able to go into urban areas and criminalize the people there because it is cheaper for their police force than to go into suburban areas where there can be drugs or contraband inside of there houses and having to look into many of the crimes police would need a search warrant because the crimes in these areas are typically done behind closed doors. Because we look suspicious to a specific police officer they take this as an advantage and use this as a style of policing it gives them to right to just stop and search me as If I was a criminal.…

    • 1426 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Racial profiling is highly disliked by many people, especially in the United States. Fauchon (2004) defines racial profiling as stopping and searching people passing through public areas solely because of their color, race, or ethnicity (p. 1). Racial profiling is looked down upon in the United States, however, many people, specifically law enforcement, do so to this day. It’s demeaning to people and it goes against what the country stands for. According to Fauchon (2004), by singling out a group of people by their race, we violate their equal protection.…

    • 169 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Stop And Frisk Analysis

    • 1113 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Stop and frisk is an unjust crime prevention that gives permission to provided police officers to stop a person and frisk them based on “reasonable suspicions” of possible criminal activities. Although nowadays it seems to be a way for police officers to harass people on the street specifically minorities. From this program, minorities experienced police interrogations, physical assault, and even arrests, only to establish innocence in court. Despite being declared unconstitutional in 2013, there’s an ongoing discussion in the news to bring it back and not just in New York but in other major cities as well. Stop and frisk is a prejudiced program that should not be reinstituted in America.…

    • 1113 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Multiple different studies and analysis’ done in varying jurisdictions across the U.S. in the early 2000s showed the same results. A person of colour that had been stopped was much more likely to be searched in comparison to a white person. Although, African Americans in particular were subject to searches more so than any other race (Mosher p. 276). Mosher points out that while racial profiling is problematic across the U.S., it is also an issue in several other countries including Britain and Canada. In Canada, however it is prevalently aimed at Aboriginals and Middle Eastern people.…

    • 1673 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Great Essays

    Racial Profiling Introduction Have you ever been racially profiled? Do you even understand why officers tend to racial profile certain individual (e.g.; African American, and Mexicans)? Well, if you have never been racially profile you are lucky or just a Caucasian. To this learner, she has been racial profile the majority of her life, but one thing I was fortunate to learn is that it is not this learner who is the problem, but the color of her skin and the system that allows it to continue to happen in regards to racial profiling. Within this discussion this learner will address racial profiling and if it still exists, public policy implications of racial profiling, constitutional issues surrounding racial profiling, and what can police agencies…

    • 1493 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Racial profiling is defined as using one’s race or ethnicity as grounds for questioning an individual of having committed an offense (English Oxford Dictionary, n.d). Although, racial profiling does not have a set specific time racial profiling has been occurring since colonial time, and it is also known as a gateway act. A gateway act is an excuse that allows individuals to approach citizens who are assumed to be criminals, and questioned them. This has now led to the mistrust amongst the public and law enforcement. This paper will be based on the agreement that there are several issues that need to be address, such as racial profiling, police use of excessive force, and to adopt more policies that allow one to minimize racial disparities.…

    • 1263 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Great Essays

    Several DWB experiences were shared representing two major themes which are getting pulled over: make sure I can drive away and fear of being pulled over (Exploring white and black account of 21st century racial profiling). African Americans are not treated the same as European decent drivers, but rather treated with hostility. They are more likely to be pulled over by police officers without breaking any law and harassed with unnecessary questions. They are often thrown into jail for crimes that they did not commit. It has become very common today to see on the news a young African American shot dead by a white police officer for a crime that was not committed.…

    • 1271 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Superior Essays

    What is the role of prosecutors, defenders, judges, and police in propagating racial disparities in the system, even if unintentionally? More important, what can system actors do to reduce or eliminate disparities”(8). Stops and frisk are mostly in black communities or cities with blacks. 684,330 stops by police in 2011 were 87 percent black and 9 percent white. Surveys by the U.S. Department of Justice found that African Americans are more susceptible to traffic stops and more likely to be searched than whites.…

    • 1575 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Essay On Stop And Frisk

    • 1259 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Stop and Frisk has been complained numerous times as racial profiling towards minorities in these type of communities. A U.S. District Court judge of south of New York, Shira Scheindlin, said that the Fourteenth Amendment was not being enforced as there isn’t equal protection to black and latinos, as they are searched more by the police than white people (Washington Post). This very compelling because a U.S. District Court judge is saying this, yet there has not been any real changes to the Stop and Frisk system. Also, considering how high of a position this judge has, she is able to see the ins and outs of the law, and she is able to determine that there is discrimination and targeting towards minorities. Furthermore, in the Washington Post article, it has a graph in which it shows that black and hispanic people are stopped more by the police, even though there is a higher population of white people.…

    • 1259 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Racial Profiling Problem

    • 1775 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Racial profiling is a problem that has been going on in the United States for far too long. Everyday, people are being pulled over and searched just because of their race or their ethnic background. This leads to many problems, such as the accused becoming upset, feeling he/she is being wronged because of race. These feelings may cause the accused to become uncooperative or hostile. When this happens, the officer is then more likely to act aggressively in the situation, which can very easily turn into a slippery slope of unfortunate events.…

    • 1775 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    This brings the topic of racial profiling forward. Racial profiling is the system taking actions or certain behaviors out on an individual not for their actions, but purely on the fact of their race. Racial profiling is outlawed in many states in America; however, this does not mean that racial profiling is not still present within the states. It is the systems job to uphold the law and protect citizens while treating them justly, but unfortunately there are some that will shout probable cause for a stop and search, when the only reasoning behind it is…

    • 1522 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Introduction Stop and frisk tactics have been used to preserve public safety and officer well-being. A stop and frisk is a non-intrusive police stop and pat-down based on the reasonable suspicion in relation to a crime that has happened, will happen, or is in the process of being carried out (Cornell Law School, 2017). Stop and frisk situations are highly common and the reported instances have increased by approximately 7% annually (Hovhannisyan, 2006). However, the approach is highly controversial because it operates primarily on officers' perceptions and opinions, which opens the door to personal prejudices dictating the usage. This executive summary includes the advantages and disadvantages involved in stop and frisk procedures as well as the constitutionality and recommendations to improve the approach.…

    • 1015 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    POLICE DISCRETION POSSIBLY CAUSING RACIAL DISCRIMINATION IN STOP AND SEARCH A report by Wesley and Kathleen revealed that black individuals were six times more likely to be stopped and searched under s1 PACE powers compared with White individuals, Mixed ethnic groups and Asian groups were just over times more likely to be stopped and searched than White persons. Section 60 (s60) of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 gives police the right to search persons in a defined area at a specific time when they believe, with good reason; that there is the possibility of serious violence; that a person is carrying a dangerous object or offensive weapon; or that an incident involving serious violence has taken place and a dangerous instrument or offensive weapon used in the incident is being carried in the locality. The ethnic breakdown of s60 stops and searches changed between 2007/2008 and 2011/2012, with the most notable change between 2007/2008 and 2008/2009; 65% of s60 stops and searches in 2007/2008 were of white persons.…

    • 631 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays