Police Traffic Stops and Racial Profiling

Police Traffic Stops and Racial Profiling by James T. O'Riley, Charles C. Thomas, Publisher, Springfield, Illinois, 2002.

In Police Traffic Stops and Racial Profiling, the author provides a unique and comprehensive review of the literature, yet distills his research so that the critical information needed can be of great value to law enforcement organizations. The book's broad definition of racial profiling includes any actions "based upon racial or ethnic stereotypes and that have the effect of treating minority motorists differently than nonminority motorists."

Much of this interesting and well-researched text deals with departmentwide enforcement on civil rights laws under U.S. Code 42, Section 14141, along with some drastic consequences for law enforcement administrators should such a decree be levied. In-depth, the author dissects the consent decree section and its application to the New Jersey State Police experience.

An outstanding book, it presents reviews on the evolution of traffic stops versus constitutional decisions by the U.S. Supreme Court through the more recent decades. It also addresses both sides of the issues, including what the critics have to say about the concerns of racial profiling.

The book contains six critical steps proposed for law enforcement administrators to use in not violating racial profiling during traffic stops. These are supported by 20 outlined areas that can impact departmental budgets if law enforcement agencies are affected by an imposed consent decree.

The book design, in its distilled concept, addresses the core of issues and their responses with appropriate endnotes listed at the conclusion of each chapter. This allows the reader an easy and quick review of specific references and comments to the chapter.

This book covers the necessary information for all law enforcement agencies at each level--city, county, state, and federal--that may need to address the ramifications of traffic stops and racial profiling. A major strong point about the book is a 38-page appendix, designed in an outline format. It commences with the first 5 pages of the New Jersey official joint application consent decree followed by 33 pages of the New Jersey decree concerning the state police, a crucial guide for other law enforcement administrators, managers, and first-line supervisors.

In addition, the applicability of this book includes, but is not limited to, all law enforcement training academies, in-service training programs, police-civilian review boards, and fraternal orders of police. Furthermore, it is recommended for policy and procedure writers, prosecutors and defense attorneys dealing with racial profiling cases, and applicable members of the U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, state attorney general offices, and state legislatures.

Police Traffic Stops and Racial Profiling was a distinct pleasure to read. It is well designed and written in a comparative analysis format that is understandable.

Reviewed by Major Larry R. Moore (Ret.)

U.S. Army Military Police Corps

Life Member, International Association of Chiefs of Police

Knoxville, Tennessee

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