Pubdate: Tues, 9 June 1999
Source: Chicago Tribune (IL)
Copyright: 1999 Chicago Tribune Company
Contact:  http://www.chicagotribune.com/
Forum: http://www.chicagotribune.com/interact/boards/
Author: Maurice Possley

REPORT ON POLICE STOPS ADDS TO FIRE

A report filed in federal court this week argues that Hispanics are more
frequently involved in drug arrests by a special Illinois State Police unit
in part because drug trafficking activity in Illinois "happens to correlate
with being Hispanic."

The report was filed as part of an ongoing lawsuit brought by the American
Civil Liberties Union against the state police that alleges Hispanics and
African-Americans are unfairly targeted for stops and searches because of
their race, a practice referred to as "racial profiling."

Patricia Mendoza, regional counsel for the Mexican American Legal Defense
and Educational Fund, called the report "clearly offensive."

"Unfortunately it does our community a disservice," Mendoza said. "I would
question the premise that drug couriers are disproportionately Hispanic."

The report's author discloses "indicators of criminal activity" that police
officers are advised to watch for when they stop motorists. Those items
include religious paraphernalia "used to divert suspicion," too little or
too much luggage for the stated length of trip, police materials "to show
support for law enforcement," tinted windows, cellular telephones, perfumes
(to cover drug smells), pagers, maps from "drug source" states, rental cars,
pre-paid telephone credit cards and attorney business cards.

Also in the report, John Donohue, a Stanford University law professor hired
by lawyers for the state police, contends that ACLU statistics showing high
rates of police stops of Hispanics are flawed. Donohue's report argues that
only 6.11 percent of all stops by the state police drug interdiction
unit--called "Valkyrie"--involve Hispanics.

In April, the ACLU filed a report that cited several statistical analyses of
state police records and contended that Hispanics are unfairly targeted:
They make up 7.9 percent of the Illinois population and 2.7 percent of the
personal vehicles trips in Illinois, but nearly one-third of certain police
stops.

Donohue's report asserts that a higher rate of drug seizures from Hispanics
occurs because state police specifically target rental cars as well as
vehicles with license plates from six states--Arizona, California, Florida,
New Mexico, New York and Texas--through which much of the drugs in the U.S.
are shipped and which have large Hispanic populations. The report also
contends that Hispanics and African-Americans make up a disproportionate
percentage of drug arrests because they succumb to the lure of the drug
trade because they have less education, face higher unemployment and work
lesser-paying jobs--an assertion disputed by civil rights groups.

The list of "indicators of criminal activity" also includes tipoffs such as
weapons, hiding places in the car, drugs in the doors, large amounts of cash
and "signs of recent drug use." The report notes that state police officers
in the drug unit are likely to target cars traveling at or just over the
speed limit, ignoring, for example, vehicles traveling at 80 miles an hour.

An ACLU spokesman attacked the report, which was filed Monday.

"The Illinois State Police incredulously claim they do not target Hispanic
drivers, but instead focus on automobiles from states outside
Illinois--states with significant Hispanic populations," Edwin Yohnka said
in a written statement. "If true, the state has substituted multiple
violations of the right to travel between states in place of blatant racial
discrimination."

That drug trafficking in Illinois correlates to being Hispanic and that
Hispanics and African-Americans are more likely to become drug dealers
because they are low-wage earners and unemployed, Yohnka said, "is offensive
to all Hispanics and African-Americans . . . a gross insult."

Mendoza, interviewed Tuesday, added, "I'm shocked that Illinois would rely
on this document, particularly in light of the evidence in other states,
such as New Jersey, of racial profiling. The worst thing is that this
document is out there. It only makes things worse. It not only perpetuates
stereotypes, but the distrust between people of color and law enforcement."

Earlier this year, in an attempt to forestall a federal civil rights
lawsuit, New Jersey's attorney general, Peter Verniero, said the state had
agreed to negotiate a consent decree to settle allegations that state police
had engaged in racial profiling against black and Hispanic motorists.

That action occurred after the U.S. Justice Department's civil rights
division said it had turned up enough evidence that state troopers used race
as a basis for stopping and searching drivers to warrant a lawsuit against
the state police. Victims, in a sarcastic twist on the offense of driving
while intoxicated, refer to the practice as "driving while black."

Two law-enforcement agencies--police departments in Pittsburgh and in
Steubenville, Ohio--previously have agreed to such consent decrees, which
require monitoring police and stricter regulations on how police handle
stops and searches.

- ---
MAP posted-by: Don Beck