When compared to the regional baseline , the APD percentage of contacts relative to Whites was lower than the regional percentage of White contacts . However , with respect to Blacks , Hispanics , Asians and American Indians , the opposite was true . This is consistent for the most part , with the comparative analysis made earlier with households that have access to vehicles .
Regarding searches , the APD data shows that there was the same or a smaller percentage of searches , when compared to state searches , relative to Whites , Hispanics and American Indians . The opposite was true of Blacks and Asians . Similar findings were attained when comparing the APD data to the regional search data , with the exception of Hispanics . That is , the APD percentage of Hispanic searches was greater than the percentage of Hispanic searches made by other law enforcement agencies in the region .
When comparing the percentage of contraband found as a result of a search , the APD data shows that APD found the same or a larger volume of contraband as a result of searches on Blacks , Asians and American Indians , when compared to the state baseline . The opposite was true of Whites and Hispanics . That is , APD data showed a smaller percentage of contraband found among Whites and Hispanics . A similar trend was found when comparing the percentage of contraband found by APD with the state baseline , with the exception of Hispanics . That is a larger percentage of Hispanic contraband was found by APD when compared to the state baseline .
Sum m ary of Findings
As referenced earlier , the most recent Texas Racial Profiling Law requires that police departments perform data audits in order to validate the data being reported . Consistent with this requirement , the Arlington Police Department has engaged del Carmen Consulting , LLC in order to perform these audits in a manner consistent with normative statistical practices . As shown in Table 6 , the audit performed reveals that the data is valid and reliable . Further , as required by law , this report also includes an analysis on the searches performed . This analysis includes information on whether contraband was found as a result of the search while controlling for race / ethnicity . The search analysis demonstrates that the police department is engaging in search practices consistent with national trends in law enforcement .
While considering the findings produced as a result of this analysis , it is recommended that the Arlington Police Department should continue to collect and evaluate additional information on motor vehicle contact data ( i . e ., reason for probable cause searches , contraband detected ), which may prove to be useful when determining the nature of the contacts police officers are making with all individuals .
As part of this effort , the Arlington Police Department should continue to : 1 ) Perform an independent analysis on contact and search data in the upcoming year .
2 ) Commission data audits in 2024 in order to assess data integrity ; that is , to ensure that the data collected is consistent with the data being reported .
The comprehensive data analysis performed serves as evidence that the Arlington Police Department has complied with the Texas Racial Profiling Law and all of its requirements . Further , the report demonstrates that the police department has incorporated a comprehensive racial profiling policy , currently offers information to the public on how to file a compliment or complaint , commissions quarterly data audits in order to ensure validity and reliability , collects and commissions the analysis of Tier 2 data , and ensures that the practice of racial profiling will not be tolerated .
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