The report by the Center for Policing Equity found that even after you factor in variables like poverty and neighborhood crime rates, Black people were stopped 3.5 times more than white people and were 4 times more likely to be subjected to force, according to data the San Diego Sheriff's Department gave from 2016 to 2020.
The report also found that while Black people in San Diego County were much more likely to be stopped than white people, they were also much less likely to be found with contraband like weapons, drugs or stolen goods.
"If you're Black and brown and you live in these impoverished parts of San Diego, it's nothing new," said Michael Whyte, a convicted felon turned police reform activist who grew up in southeast San Diego.
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He, like many other police reform activists, want to see some of the money allocated toward law enforcement agencies to be redirected to community programs.
In a press release, the Sheriff's Department responded to the report by saying the study didn’t take into account the complexities of larger agencies like theirs which covers 4200 square miles and that the use of force numbers in the report also included incidents that occurred in the seven county jails.
In a statement to NBC 7, a spokesperson from the Sheriff's Department said they worked with the Center for Policing Equity on this study because they are dedicated to building a culture of trust. They're excited by recent opportunities from the Board of Supervisors for non law enforcement response to mental health and substance abuse calls for service.
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You can take a look at the full report here.
