Comprehensive Racial Profiling Act of 2012
Message Preview
From: Your Name <you@example.com>
To: rep-ajello@rilin.state.ri.us rep-blazejewski@rilin.state.ri.us rep-brien@rilin.state.ri.us rep-chippendale@rilin.state.ri.us rep-costa@rilin.state.ri.us rep-desimone@rilin.state.ri.us rep-flaherty@rilin.state.ri.us rep-lally@rilin.state.ri.us rep-lima@rilin.state.ri.us rep-marcello@rilin.state.ri.us rep-martin@rilin.state.ri.us rep-morrison@rilin.state.ri.us rep-oneill@rilin.state.ri.us rep-tarro@rilin.state.ri.us sen-goodwin@rilin.state.ri.us sen-hodgson@rilin.state.ri.us sen-jabour@rilin.state.ri.us sen-lynch@rilin.state.ri.us sen-mccaffrey@rilin.state.ri.us sen-metts@rilin.state.ri.us sen-nesselbush@rilin.state.ri.us sen-perry@rilin.state.ri.us sen-shibley@rilin.state.ri.us sen-walaska@rilin.state.ri.us
Subject: Comprehensive Racial Profiling Act of 2012
February 22, 2012
Honorable Members of the Judiciary Committee,
Our nation has come a long way since the Civil Rights movement. The United States is more diverse, accepting and multicultural than it has ever been. But there are still strides we can make to ensure that all of our people get the equitable treatment that they deserve.
Despite the voluntary measures taken by some officers to combat racial profiling, traffic stops data continue to show that minority drivers in Rhode Island are being pulled over at twice the rate of white drivers, and traffic stops data continue to show that they are twice as likely again to be searched. This goes on despite statistics that show that, overall, white drivers are more likely to be carrying contraband. There appears to be nothing to explain this discrepancy except for skin color. As Rhode Islanders, we cannot allow this to continue.
Every time a minority driver is stopped, searched and then released after no contraband is found, it is not just a waste of our police officers' valuable time and resources; It is a waste of our own hard-earned tax dollars. This is a major problem in a state where 3 out of every 4 searches turn up nothing. It is clear that we need a true mandate to pass the legislature in order to promote good community relations that are critical for strong law enforcement. We need to eliminate questionable policies and practices that encourage inaccurate stereotypes about the prevalence of crime by racial minorities, and reduce nonproductive police searches that waste limited police resources.
The Comprehensive Racial Profiling Prevention Act of 2012 is exactly the legislation that we need. It would enact a variety of protections designed to minimize invalid stops and searches and increase officer accountability at a minimal cost to our police departments. The main provision is that police officers would be required to document the cause of their stops and searches. This helps to ensure that no driver, regardless of race, is subjected to any search without probable cause or reasonable suspicion.
In departments where this measure was taken up voluntarily, such as Narragansett, the racial disparity in their searches dropped to nearly zero. This is legislation that is simple and has been proven to work.
By signing, I pledge my support to the Comprehensive Racial Profiling Prevention Act of 2012 and urge your support of this critical legislation.
Your Name
Your Organization
123 Your St.
Yousville, YO 12345
Phone: (123)456-7890
Fax: (123)456-7890x123
p.s.
Your Personal Statement
--
Campaign (<em>2714</em>): <em>Comprehensive Racial Profiling Act of 2012</em>
Learn more about this campaign here: <em>http://www.citizenspeak.org/campaign/nevets/comprehensive-racial-profiling-act-2012</em>
--
This campaign was created with CitizenSpeak. Visit us online at http://citizenspeak.org
To: rep-ajello@rilin.state.ri.us rep-blazejewski@rilin.state.ri.us rep-brien@rilin.state.ri.us rep-chippendale@rilin.state.ri.us rep-costa@rilin.state.ri.us rep-desimone@rilin.state.ri.us rep-flaherty@rilin.state.ri.us rep-lally@rilin.state.ri.us rep-lima@rilin.state.ri.us rep-marcello@rilin.state.ri.us rep-martin@rilin.state.ri.us rep-morrison@rilin.state.ri.us rep-oneill@rilin.state.ri.us rep-tarro@rilin.state.ri.us sen-goodwin@rilin.state.ri.us sen-hodgson@rilin.state.ri.us sen-jabour@rilin.state.ri.us sen-lynch@rilin.state.ri.us sen-mccaffrey@rilin.state.ri.us sen-metts@rilin.state.ri.us sen-nesselbush@rilin.state.ri.us sen-perry@rilin.state.ri.us sen-shibley@rilin.state.ri.us sen-walaska@rilin.state.ri.us
Subject: Comprehensive Racial Profiling Act of 2012
February 22, 2012
Honorable Members of the Judiciary Committee,
Our nation has come a long way since the Civil Rights movement. The United States is more diverse, accepting and multicultural than it has ever been. But there are still strides we can make to ensure that all of our people get the equitable treatment that they deserve.
Despite the voluntary measures taken by some officers to combat racial profiling, traffic stops data continue to show that minority drivers in Rhode Island are being pulled over at twice the rate of white drivers, and traffic stops data continue to show that they are twice as likely again to be searched. This goes on despite statistics that show that, overall, white drivers are more likely to be carrying contraband. There appears to be nothing to explain this discrepancy except for skin color. As Rhode Islanders, we cannot allow this to continue.
Every time a minority driver is stopped, searched and then released after no contraband is found, it is not just a waste of our police officers' valuable time and resources; It is a waste of our own hard-earned tax dollars. This is a major problem in a state where 3 out of every 4 searches turn up nothing. It is clear that we need a true mandate to pass the legislature in order to promote good community relations that are critical for strong law enforcement. We need to eliminate questionable policies and practices that encourage inaccurate stereotypes about the prevalence of crime by racial minorities, and reduce nonproductive police searches that waste limited police resources.
The Comprehensive Racial Profiling Prevention Act of 2012 is exactly the legislation that we need. It would enact a variety of protections designed to minimize invalid stops and searches and increase officer accountability at a minimal cost to our police departments. The main provision is that police officers would be required to document the cause of their stops and searches. This helps to ensure that no driver, regardless of race, is subjected to any search without probable cause or reasonable suspicion.
In departments where this measure was taken up voluntarily, such as Narragansett, the racial disparity in their searches dropped to nearly zero. This is legislation that is simple and has been proven to work.
By signing, I pledge my support to the Comprehensive Racial Profiling Prevention Act of 2012 and urge your support of this critical legislation.
Your Name
Your Organization
123 Your St.
Yousville, YO 12345
Phone: (123)456-7890
Fax: (123)456-7890x123
p.s.
Your Personal Statement
--
Campaign (<em>2714</em>): <em>Comprehensive Racial Profiling Act of 2012</em>
Learn more about this campaign here: <em>http://www.citizenspeak.org/campaign/nevets/comprehensive-racial-profiling-act-2012</em>
--
This campaign was created with CitizenSpeak. Visit us online at http://citizenspeak.org
