Debate Over Racial Profiling

* Re “ ‘Profiling’ Rates a Look in L.A.,” editorial, Jan. 25: We would like to point out that the Los Angeles Police Department and the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department already have systems in place to assure that the practice of racial profiling by officers and deputies is dealt with quickly and effectively.

There is a major distinction between detaining an individual based on a racial profile and detaining an individual based on reasonable suspicion. Racial profiling focuses exclusively upon race. Reasonable suspicion is the accumulation of more than one factor, coupled with reasonable inferences. Factors such as the time of day, location and race cannot alone justify a legal detention; however, used in conjunction with other circumstances, detention could be justified.

The Times’ own definition of racial profiling, “stopping minority motorists on the basis of a ‘racial profile,’ without reasonable suspicion, to harass and intimidate them and to perhaps discover some evidence of criminal activities,” constitutes serious officer misconduct. These would be classified as inappropriate activities by any LAPD officer or sheriff’s deputy and should be reported immediately. Once reported, these charges will be thoroughly investigated. If the officer or deputy is found guilty, he or she will immediately be disciplined--this process is far better than that proposed by The Times.

The Times would want us to participate in an anonymous survey which would not identify the officer, victim or the circumstance but would rely on a statistical trend analysis to tell management that there is a perceived problem.

To assure that all who are stopped and detained are treated equally in the eyes of the law, both organizations require officers and deputies to identify themselves every time a person is detained, even when there is no arrest or citation. An individual believing he or she had been wrongly stopped or detained may file a complaint that will be thoroughly investigated. Specifically, the issue of reasonable suspicion will be addressed.

With these systems already in place, it does not make sense to collect data for a one-year period and wait for trends to be analyzed before taking action. It’s not a question of the effort involved in collecting and compiling the information. It is whether both organizations take steps backward by analyzing an issue they are already dealing with quite effectively.

BERNARD C. PARKS

Chief, LAPD

LEROY D. BACA

Sheriff, Los Angeles County

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* Re “Baca Rejects Study of Race Link to Traffic Stops,” Jan. 21:

So I see Sheriff Baca has joined Chief Parks on the “cowards” team. After all we’ve heard from everyone from celebrities to common folk about treatment from the LAPD, for Parks to deny racial profiling is ridiculous. Since every episode of “Cops” and “World’s Wildest Police Chases” has video in cop cars, why don’t the officers just tape and turn in their taped shifts and match public complaints against the tapes. Video doesn’t lie.

JOHN MUNOZ

Canoga Park