NCJ Number
195296
Date Published
2002
Length
13 pages
Annotation
This report, prepared by the Police Assessment Resource Center (PARC), discusses the disparate impact of the U.S. criminal justice system on racial and ethnic minorities and raises questions concerning why it has occurred and how it can be mitigated.
Abstract
In this article racial profiling is discussed as being the possible source of the disparate impact of the criminal justice system on racial and ethnic minorities in the United States. This report discusses the difference between disparate impact and discriminatory impact. It explains that disparate impact may not derive from race-based discrimination when the conduct or action rather than stereotyping of the individual is the cause of the stop or arrest. However, discriminatory impact is the result when stereotypes, loose generalizations, or statistical correlations focus on an individual's appearance to justify a stop or arrest. It is recommended in this article that police departments collect data on stops, and based on the results of this data, set limits on police officer behavior, arguments, and attitudes which may lead to stereotype-based discriminatory treatment as opposed to behavior-based disparate treatment of individuals by the police.