Join our Mailing List!
Please click the link below to sign up for your community paper mailing list. Stay up to date with all the events going on in your community as well as the latest news.Sign Up Today!
Racial profiling report released
By Ashley Vasquez
Smithville’s racial profiling statistics look as if they are some of the worst in the Kansas City area, however, the way the Attorney General’s office calculates the results skews the numbers, according to local officials.
Attorney General Jay Nixon released the official annual report of vehicle stops in Missouri last week. The report provides racial and ethnic information on drivers who were stopped during the course of more than 1.5 million vehicle stops made by 636 law enforcement agencies in the state during 2007. The report is part of a law passed in 2000 that requires all law enforcement agencies in Missouri to report specific information about all of their vehicle stops.
The report shows a disparity index for all drivers based on their ethnicity. For Smithville, the disparity index was 6.79 for African Americans, 1.24 for Hispanics, 1.42 for Asians and 96.01 for whites. Numbers larger than “1” indicate that more people than the average population of that ethnicity were pulled over — meaning, for example, that Smithville’s African American stops were six times higher than the formula allowed.
However, as in years past, Smithville Police Chief Ken Wilson along with the Attorney General’s office have stated that the disparity formula is flawed for communities like Smithville because it is based on population numbers from the most recent census and do not take into account travelers for Smithville Lake or that a major highway runs through the community.
“We have close to 3 million visitors traveling through Smithville each year,” Wilson said. “It is unreasonable for us to only pull over a few people in each ethnicity because we have significantly more people coming through town.”
Last year, there were 3,907 people stopped in Smithville. Of those, 3,676 were white; 92 were African Americans; 87 were Hispanic; 42 were Asian; two were Native American; and there were eight “others.” The disparity index was based on a population of only 4,616.
Even with the high disparity index results, Smithville scores have actually dropped significantly over the past few years due to changes in number of stops and increased population. In 2004, there were only 74 African-American stops, but the disparity index was rated a 12.96 and Hispanic was 2.79 with 94 people stopped. Attributing to this high number was that the total of number of stops was only 2,343 — more than 30 percent less than in 2007.
Statewide, however, the report shows that the disparity index for African Americans did rise from 1.49 in 2006 to 1.58 in 2007 as well as for Hispanics going from 1.09 in 2006 to 2.07 in 2007.
Additionally, the state began reporting investigative stops along with traditional stops in the 2007 report resulting in an increase in disparity numbers in Kansas City and St. Louis especially. The statewide numbers also indicate that African American drivers were 66 percent more likely to be stopped than white drivers while Hispanic drivers were 5 percent more likely to be stopped. The report also indicated that 12.26 percent of African Americans were searched if stopped; 14.96 of Hispanics; and 6.86 of whites.
“While there is no single explanation for why disparities exist, the inclusion of investigative stops and the resulting impact on the on the disparity index for African American drivers has caused a trend that bears watching,” Nixon said in a release.
Wilson said his department would keep doing what they had been.
“We are just out there on the streets stopping people when they break the law,” he said. “We don’t look for people of a certain race because it is really difficult to see a driver. We look to see what the car itself has done wrong.”
DISPARITY INDEX FOR LOCAL COMMUNITIES:
A number larger than “1” indicates that a higher number of people in that ethnicity were stopped by police than the community’s population formula allows. A number less than “1” indicates that less than the average population of that ethnicity were stopped. Note: The formula is based on census numbers not the number of travelers or visitors through a community, which could account for some large disparities.
Smithville
- White: 0.96
- African American: 6.79
- Hispanic: 1.24
- Asian: 1.42
Kearney
- White: 1.01
- African American: 4.77
- Hispanic: 0.29
- Asian: 0
Liberty
- White: 0.99
- African American: 1.44
- Hispanic: 0.96
- Asian: 0.79
Clay County Sheriff’s Office
- White: 1.02
- African American: 1.50
- Hispanic: 0.71
- Asian: 0.48
North Kansas City
- White: 0.96
- African American: 2.53
- Hispanic: 0.71
- Asian: 0.45
Kansas City
- White: 0.89
- African American: 1.37
- Hispanic: 0.79
- Asian: 0.48
Parkville
- White: 0.99
- African American: 1.51
- Hispanic: 0.89
- Asian: 0.56
Smithville Editor Ashley Vasquez can be reached at 532-4444 or ashleyvasquez@npgco.com.
printable version
e-mail this story
Attorney General Jay Nixon released the official annual report of vehicle stops in Missouri last week. The report provides racial and ethnic information on drivers who were stopped during the course of more than 1.5 million vehicle stops made by 636 law enforcement agencies in the state during 2007. The report is part of a law passed in 2000 that requires all law enforcement agencies in Missouri to report specific information about all of their vehicle stops.
The report shows a disparity index for all drivers based on their ethnicity. For Smithville, the disparity index was 6.79 for African Americans, 1.24 for Hispanics, 1.42 for Asians and 96.01 for whites. Numbers larger than “1” indicate that more people than the average population of that ethnicity were pulled over — meaning, for example, that Smithville’s African American stops were six times higher than the formula allowed.
However, as in years past, Smithville Police Chief Ken Wilson along with the Attorney General’s office have stated that the disparity formula is flawed for communities like Smithville because it is based on population numbers from the most recent census and do not take into account travelers for Smithville Lake or that a major highway runs through the community.
“We have close to 3 million visitors traveling through Smithville each year,” Wilson said. “It is unreasonable for us to only pull over a few people in each ethnicity because we have significantly more people coming through town.”
Last year, there were 3,907 people stopped in Smithville. Of those, 3,676 were white; 92 were African Americans; 87 were Hispanic; 42 were Asian; two were Native American; and there were eight “others.” The disparity index was based on a population of only 4,616.
Even with the high disparity index results, Smithville scores have actually dropped significantly over the past few years due to changes in number of stops and increased population. In 2004, there were only 74 African-American stops, but the disparity index was rated a 12.96 and Hispanic was 2.79 with 94 people stopped. Attributing to this high number was that the total of number of stops was only 2,343 — more than 30 percent less than in 2007.
Statewide, however, the report shows that the disparity index for African Americans did rise from 1.49 in 2006 to 1.58 in 2007 as well as for Hispanics going from 1.09 in 2006 to 2.07 in 2007.
Additionally, the state began reporting investigative stops along with traditional stops in the 2007 report resulting in an increase in disparity numbers in Kansas City and St. Louis especially. The statewide numbers also indicate that African American drivers were 66 percent more likely to be stopped than white drivers while Hispanic drivers were 5 percent more likely to be stopped. The report also indicated that 12.26 percent of African Americans were searched if stopped; 14.96 of Hispanics; and 6.86 of whites.
“While there is no single explanation for why disparities exist, the inclusion of investigative stops and the resulting impact on the on the disparity index for African American drivers has caused a trend that bears watching,” Nixon said in a release.
Wilson said his department would keep doing what they had been.
“We are just out there on the streets stopping people when they break the law,” he said. “We don’t look for people of a certain race because it is really difficult to see a driver. We look to see what the car itself has done wrong.”
DISPARITY INDEX FOR LOCAL COMMUNITIES:
A number larger than “1” indicates that a higher number of people in that ethnicity were stopped by police than the community’s population formula allows. A number less than “1” indicates that less than the average population of that ethnicity were stopped. Note: The formula is based on census numbers not the number of travelers or visitors through a community, which could account for some large disparities.
Smithville
- White: 0.96
- African American: 6.79
- Hispanic: 1.24
- Asian: 1.42
Kearney
- White: 1.01
- African American: 4.77
- Hispanic: 0.29
- Asian: 0
Liberty
- White: 0.99
- African American: 1.44
- Hispanic: 0.96
- Asian: 0.79
Clay County Sheriff’s Office
- White: 1.02
- African American: 1.50
- Hispanic: 0.71
- Asian: 0.48
North Kansas City
- White: 0.96
- African American: 2.53
- Hispanic: 0.71
- Asian: 0.45
Kansas City
- White: 0.89
- African American: 1.37
- Hispanic: 0.79
- Asian: 0.48
Parkville
- White: 0.99
- African American: 1.51
- Hispanic: 0.89
- Asian: 0.56
Smithville Editor Ashley Vasquez can be reached at 532-4444 or ashleyvasquez@npgco.com.