This section examines traffic stops, which are stops for which the recorded reason was “traffic violation.”
San Diego (City), CA 2021
TRAFFIC STOPS
Note: The racial categorization scheme mandated by California law requires law enforcement agencies to record stops of “Middle Eastern or South Asian” people separately from stops of “Asians” (that is, East Asians), and does not distinguish Middle Eastern from South Asian people. Because South Asians cannot be distinguished from non-Asian Middle Easterners in this dataset, stops of “Middle Eastern or South Asian” people are not counted as stops of “Asians” in the analyses on this page.
Erratum: The “more information” text for the contraband found and not found analyses were updated on March 24, 2022 to clarify that searches as a condition of probation or parole were excluded from the analyses.
TRAFFIC STOPS BY RACIAL GROUP
- 7.5% of all people stopped between 2018-Q3 and 2020-Q3 were recorded as Asian.
- 15% of all people stopped between 2018-Q3 and 2020-Q3 were recorded as Black.
- 34% of all people stopped between 2018-Q3 and 2020-Q3 were recorded as Latinx.
- 4.4% of all people stopped between 2018-Q3 and 2020-Q3 were recorded as Middle Eastern or South Asian.
- 38% of all people stopped between 2018-Q3 and 2020-Q3 were recorded as White.
- 1.4% of all people stopped between 2018-Q3 and 2020-Q3 were recorded as Other.
More information
What does this show?
Each bar on the right shows the percentage of the total stops recorded each year that were people of one racial group. The bars to the left, and the dotted line, show the average percentage of stops recorded for each racial group for the entire report period. Hovering over a bar shows the number of stops that makes up that percentage.
How was this calculated?
We took the average number of stops recorded per year and calculated the percentage of stops that were made of people of each racial group. See the Data Notes tab for information on how we define racial groups.
We measure a vehicle stop as a single record of a driver being stopped by police, regardless of the number of officers or passengers involved. We recognize that departments may collect vehicle stop data in other ways (for example, not distinguishing between searches of drivers and passengers). Our guidance on collecting data has more information on how to effectively report vehicle stops.
We generally use all vehicle stops data provided by departments, including incomplete years of data. However, certain analyses require complete years of data, so time periods may vary across charts.
Data required for this analysis:
- Incident unique identifier
- Date of incident
- Driver's racial group
To arrive at this finding, we first looked at the total number of traffic stops made in each quarter with complete data.
The total number of traffic stops recorded each quarter varied from a high of 22,257 in 2018-Q3 to a low of 11,459 in 2020-Q2.
CONTRABAND FOUND AND NOT FOUND IN TRAFFIC STOP SEARCHES
- Latinx people who were searched possessed contraband such as weapons, drugs, or stolen goods less frequently than White people.
- Asian people who were searched possessed contraband such as weapons, drugs, or stolen goods less frequently than White people.
- Middle Eastern or South Asian people who were searched possessed contraband such as weapons, drugs, or stolen goods less frequently than White people.
More information
What does this show?
One common explanation for why members of some racial groups are stopped or searched at different rates is that they may be more likely to have contraband. To assess this, we looked at whether searches of people of different racial groups resulted in contraband being found at different rates. For each racial group, we separated all searches into the percentage that resulted in contraband found and the percentage that resulted in no contraband found.
The darker portion of each bar (on the bottom) shows the percentage of all searches of people of that racial group that ended with contraband found, while the lighter portion of the bar (at the top) shows the percentage where no contraband was found. Hovering over a bar shows the number of searches that makes up that percentage. Each bar at the top shows the total number of searches recorded for that racial group.
It is important to compare this chart to the percentage of traffic stops of each racial group, above, to identify which groups may be experiencing a high volume of stops that may lead to high totals of contraband found. It’s also important to note that discovered contraband is not necessarily indicative of serious crime. It’s rare that contraband of any kind is found during a search, and an even smaller fraction of discovered contraband is related to serious criminal activity. Many instances of discovered contraband are simple drug possession, gun registration issues, or open containers of alcohol. While more substantial discoveries do occur, they come at the expense of thousands of stops that yield nothing; contraband searches are fundamentally unproductive and do not prevent serious crime. As such, police are considering more cost-effective strategies to prevent and respond to impaired driving, as well as address other issues like gun violence that more directly implicate public safety.
How was this calculated?
We took the total recorded searches of drivers of each racial group and calculated the percentage that did and did not reveal contraband.
Police are typically required to search people they arrest and vehicles they impound or tow. When the search reason is provided in the law enforcement agency’s data, these mandatory searches are excluded from this analysis because they are not necessarily based on an officer’s discretionary evaluation of whether they expect to find contraband. Otherwise, this analysis includes any search that was not recorded as mandatory, including both discretionary searches and those with no search reason provided.
See the Data Notes tab for information on how we define racial groups.
Data required for this analysis:
- Incident unique identifier
- Date of incident
- Racial group of person stopped
- Search(es) conducted
- Reason for search
- Contraband found in each search
COMPARING SEARCH RATES AT TRAFFIC STOPS
- Once stopped, Black people were searched 2.6 times as often as White people.
- Once stopped, Latinx people were searched 2.3 times as often as White people.
- Once stopped, Asian people were searched 0.8 times as often as White people.
- Once stopped, Middle Eastern or South Asian people were searched 0.6 times as often as White people.
More information
What does this show?
This visualization shows, out of the same number of stopped drivers, how many drivers in each racial group were then searched.
How was this calculated?
We first divided the number of stops that involved a search for each racial group by the number of stops of that racial group. We then multiplied that number by 1,000 to get the per 1,000 stops rate.
Police are typically required to search people they arrest and vehicles they impound or tow. When the search reason is provided in the law enforcement agency’s data, these mandatory searches are excluded from this analysis because they are not necessarily based on an officer’s discretionary evaluation of whether they expect to find contraband. Otherwise, this analysis includes any search that was not recorded as mandatory, including both discretionary searches and those with no search reason provided.
See the Data Notes tab for information on how we define racial groups.
Data required for this analysis:
- Incident unique identifier
- Date of incident
- Driver's racial group
- Search(es) conducted
- Reason for search
TRAFFIC STOP REASONS BY RACIAL GROUP
- 37% of stops of Black people were for Equipment Stops and 12% were for License / Registration Stops, compared to 20% and 7.7% of stops of White people.
- 32% of stops of Latinx people were for Equipment Stops, compared to 20% of stops of White people.
- 72% of stops of White people were for Moving Violations, compared to 51% of stops of Black people.
- 72% of stops of White people were for Moving Violations, compared to 60% of stops of Latinx people.
More information
What does this show?
Each colored bar shows the percentage of all stops of drivers of that racial group for which that stop reason was recorded. Hovering over a colored bar shows the number of stops that make up that percentage. Each gray bar on the right shows the total number of stops that were made for a given reason. Any stop reason that was recorded in a high number of stops, or that has large disparities, will influence the racial makeup of vehicle stops overall.
The most common reason for contact with the police in the United States is being the driver in a traffic stop, and Black people are more likely to be stopped by police. Black people may also be more likely to be stopped for reasons that tend to be less related to public safety –such as equipment stops and license or registration checks– which unnecessarily increases their likelihood of being searched, experiencing police use of force, and being killed by police. Jurisdictions should invest in evidence-informed practices that reduce the footprint of policing on traffic safety to address persistent racial disparities in traffic enforcement that pose an ongoing public safety risk to Black people.
How was this calculated?
We took the total recorded stops of drivers of each racial group and calculated the percentage made for each reason. We then grouped these percentages according to stop reason.
We combine categories of reasons for easier interpretation. See the Data Notes tab for details on how these categories are created and how racial groups are defined.
Data required for this analysis:
- Incident unique identifier
- Date of incident
- Driver's racial group
- Stop reason
TRAFFIC STOP OUTCOMES BY RACIAL GROUP
- Once stopped, Black people were arrested 1.7 times as often as White people. They were also 1.5 times as likely to be released with a warning or no action taken.
- Once stopped, Latinx people were arrested 1.2 times as often as White people. They were also 1.2 times as likely to be released with a warning or no action taken.
More information
What does this show?
Each colored bar shows the percentage of all stops of drivers of that racial group for which that stop outcome was recorded. Hovering over a bar shows the number of stops that makes up that percentage. Each gray bar shows the total number of stops for which that stop outcome was recorded.
Findings on recorded traffic stop outcomes should be interpreted in context with findings on racial disparities in recorded stop reasons and searches at traffic stops. People of racial groups who are stopped more frequently are often also more likely to be stopped for reasons that tend to be less related to public safety, which may increase their likelihood of being released with a warning or no action taken, as well as decrease their likelihood of receiving a citation. People who are more likely to be stopped despite not committing any crime or infraction are subject to a greater burden of police contact, which increases the likelihood of a cascade of interrelated harms including arrest, criminalization, and even injury or death.
How was this calculated?
We took the total recorded stops of drivers in each racial group and calculated the percentages for which each enforcement outcome was recorded. We then grouped these percentages according to enforcement outcome.
We combine categories of outcomes for easier interpretation. See the Data Notes tab for details on how these categories are created and how racial groups are defined.
Data required for this analysis:
- Incident unique identifier
- Date of incident
- Driver's racial group
- Stop outcome (e.g. arrest, citation, or warning/no action)
TRAFFIC STOPS BY WORK UNIT AND RACIAL GROUP
More information
What does this show?
“Work unit” describes the work groups within a department. It can refer to the assignment of the officer making the stop (e.g. Detective Unit, Narcotics, Traffic, etc.), or the geographic areas where stops are made (i.e. precincts, districts, zones, etc.).
Each colored bar shows the percentage of stops recorded by each work unit of drivers of each racial group. The Multiple Work Units category, if used, represents stops involving officers from two or more work units. Hovering over a bar shows the number of stops that make up that percentage. The grey bars on the right show the total number of stops recorded by each work unit. Any work unit that records a large number of stops or records large racial disparities will influence overall racial disparities in vehicle searches. If disparities are present among most work units, or are severe in some work units, the different racial makeup of various neighborhoods is likely not the whole explanation for the observed disparity.
How was this calculated?
We took the total recorded stops and first separated them by the work unit that made the stop. We then calculated what percentage was recorded for people of each racial group.
The “Other Work Units” category, if used, combines the work units recording less than 2% of stops. See the Data Notes tab for information on how we define racial groups.
Data required for this analysis:
- Incident unique identifier
- Date of incident
- Driver's racial group
- Officer assignment, beat, precinct, district, or other designated police service zone