Do cops target blacks? FBI stats show arrest disparity
Jay Scott Smith
African-Americans were arrested
at some of the highest rates in the country in Monmouth and Ocean counties,
according to a review of FBI records.
The statistics for 2011-2012
show that in several Shore communities, blacks accounted for up to 44 percent
of arrests in towns where the black population was less than 15 percent of
total residents, according to the FBI data compiled by USA Today. Of the 19
local police departments that self-reported their arrest numbers to the FBI,
the biggest disparities were seen at the Monmouth County Sheriff's Department
and the Wall police department in Monmouth, and the Lakewood police department
in Ocean.
Arrest rates and race have come
into sharper focus in recent weeks following the shooting death of a Michael
Brown, a black, unarmed suspect, by a white police officer in Ferguson,
Missouri. But while the FBI statistics show the racial disparity, a gulf of
opinions divide the reasons. Some people of color will quickly point to the
disparity as racial profiling of African-Americans. While it could be an
underlying factor, police agencies and others say that there are a number of
reasons that go beyond race.
"It doesn't mean that
police are discriminating," David Harris, a University of Pittsburgh law
professor, told USA Today. "But it does mean it's worth looking at. It
means you might have a problem and you need to pay attention."
Harris said that while
"disparity is not discrimination," people whose local police
departments have disparity issues "would have a legitimate reason to go to
his or her police department and say what gives, explain this."
The Monmouth County Sheriff's
Department, which had the most arrests of the 19 police agencies in both
counties, showed the greatest disparity. In 2011-12, 6,768 arrests made and
3,010 were of black suspects, or 44.5 percent, according to USA Today's
analysis. Monmouth County has a black population of 7 percent, or about 46,400
residents. The arrests were mostly because of outstanding warrants, according
to the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office.
In Wall, a township where just
638 of its 26,100 residents are black, 17 percent of their arrests — 468 of
them — were African-Americans. In Lakewood, where just 6 percent of the
population is black, 35 percent of the arrests in 2011-2012 were of
African-Americans.
"The hard questions you
want to answer is what's behind those numbers, what types of crimes they are,
the and the time period," said Al Della Fave, the spokesman for the Ocean
County Prosecutor's office. Of note, the Ocean County Sheriff's Department
reported that nearly 45 percent of its arrests in 2011-2012 were of
African-Americans.
Calls to Wall Township police
and the Monmouth County Sheriff were not returned. Della Fave, who said that a
majority of the Ocean County Sheriff's Department's arrests come from
outstanding warrants, offered the fluctuating population of the Shore as
another explanation for the some of the skewed numbers.
"Our county is strange
because we have the summer influx," he said. "We have two
populations: we have the winter population and we have the summer population.
"During the vacation
season, the population almost quadruples," he added. "You've got to
take that into account." Della Fave also said that prosecutor Joseph
Coronato, who took office in 2013, would look into the numbers to get a better
understanding of why disparity is happening.
We Live It Every Day"
Fred Rush has a long history of
witnessing and dealing with racial tension and racial issues in Lakewood. The
president of Ocean County's NAACP chapter said that the numbers, particularly
in Lakewood, are indicative of a bigger problem between the police and its
black residents.
"One would say that it
because of the community we live in," Rush said. "We are essentially
three communities: the Orthodox, the Hispanics and blacks. It's a big concern
of ours and we're trying to deal with it."
Rush said that they have
noticed the disparities for years and he also wonders what the real answers
are, feeling that no straight answers are given.
"You can ask that question
as many times as they want and they will tell you that they don't (racially)
profile," Rush said. "But one has to believe to some degree that they
do. In Lakewood, that's something that I notice.
"I go to the courts a lot
and I'll just sit and look at the disparity," he added. "When you
look at the (black) population and then look at our courts. There's a few
scattered Caucasians, a lot of Hispanics, and then blacks and that's just on
the municipal level."
Rush is currently attempting to
get the four Lakewood High School football players that are currently awaiting
trial on robbery charges to be tried as juveniles. Rush said that he has been
asked by judges why he's in court and he said it's "just to see how
justice is being administered."
Lakewood Police Chief Robert
Lawson could not be reached for comment.
Rush acknowledged that
profiling is not the only reason behind the disparity in arrests, saying that
societal factors such as lack of education, unemployment and a damaged family
structure help contribute to criminal behavior.
"All that goes on here,
and it's not condoned, but I would surely say that this is not a way of life
here," Rush said. "Disparities are disparities and discriminatory and
it's a big problem here in Lakewood."
Rush said that a lot of the
issues in Lakewood do not receive much exposure. He said that the problems of
African-Americans, particularly young black men, being arrested is a distinct
problem that goes beyond numbers.
"It's not something that
we just noticed," he said. "You can bring out statistics, but we live
it every day and we see it. There's more of a propensity for (a black male) to
get stopped than for somebody white."
"Do we have problems? Yes.
We have tremendous problems," he added. "You don't really have to be
extremely educated to see the disparate treatment of our people and especially
with the justice system. You don't have to be a rocket scientists to know
that."
