Police Departments Find Race Bias In Traffic Stops

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A new study by four Vermont police departments says black male drivers are almost twice as likely as white drivers to be stopped by police in Burlington and South Burlington.

That was one of the findings released today by a group called the Uncommon Alliance and police from Burlington, South Burlington, Winooski and the University of Vermont. The data was taken from almost 26,000 traffic stops in the four communities in 2009 and 2010 and subsequently analyzed by a UVM professor.

Earlier this year, the Vermont State Police released a study that found minority drivers were more likely to be stopped and ticketed and their vehicles searched than were white drivers.

Police and community leaders hope to use the data to eliminate implicit biases in policing.

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