In February, the judge in US v. Moore dismissed an indictment against a Black Richmond man after finding the city police department selectively enforced its traffic laws against Black Richmonders.
JULIAN used data from the Virginia Community Policing Act (VCPA) and the methodology used in Moore to expand the statistical analysis across the entire state.
The study found statistically significant racial disparities in 94 Virginia police departments, with 39 departments showing substantial disparities in three or more of the five tests performed.
The study did not look at the number of stops, but it compared the rates of outcomes for individuals once they were stopped.
“This data was essential to this case,” said Judge John Gibney, the judge in Moore. “It shows a disgraceful disparity in enforcement of traffic laws, with Black drivers getting the short end of the stick. Richmond is not the only locality with this problem; the state wide statistics show a remarkable record of picking on Black drivers. And subsequent reports by the Commonwealth show that the trend continues. One would think that Virginia’s citizens would cry out in protest over this situation, but they don’t.”
In over one-third of qualifying departments, Black people were more than twice as likely to be searched or arrested than White people during police stops.
Some measures of racial disparity have declined since July 2020, particularly in-person searches, vehicle searches and traffic violation outcomes.
Below are some highlights from localities across Virginia. The data used was from July 2020 to September 2023.
Norfolk:
40.8% of residents are White and 39.3% are Black.
- Black people are 2.66% more likely to be arrested than White people.
- Black people are 2.7% more likely to have their person searched than White people.
- Black people are 4.4% more likely to have their car searched than White people.
- Black people are 7.65 more likely to be arrested when stopped for a traffic violation than White people.
- Black people are 8.71% more likely to be arrested when stopped for an equipment violation than White people.
Fairfax County:
47% of residents are White and 9.7% are Black.
- Black people are 2.7% more likely to be arrested than White people.
- Black people are 2.56% more likely to have their person searched than White people.
- Black people are 1.98% more likely to have their car searched than White people.
- Black people are 0.84% more likely to be arrested when stopped for a traffic violation than White people.
- Black people are 1.23% more likely to be arrested when stopped for an equipment violation than White people.
Chesterfield County:
59% of residents are White and 23% are Black.
- Black people are 1.47% more likely to be arrested than White people.
- Black people are 1.51% more likely to have their person searched than White people.
- Black people are 1.48% more likely to have their car searched than White people.
- Black people are 1.58% more likely to be arrested when stopped for a traffic violation than White people.
- Black people are 1.61% more likely to be arrested when stopped for an equipment violation than White people.
Roanoke City
56% of residents are White and 29% are Black.
- Black people are 1.39% more likely to be arrested than White people.
- Black people are 1.17% more likely to have their person searched than White people.
- Black people are 1.36% more likely to have their car searched than White people.
- Black people are 1.13% more likely to be arrested when stopped for a traffic violation than White people.
- Black people are 1.04% more likely to be arrested when stopped for an equipment violation than White people.
Richmond City
43.7% of residents are Black and 41.8% are White.
- Black people are 3.43% more likely to be arrested than White people.
- Black people are 3.56% more likely to have their person searched than White people.
- Black people are 3.7% more likely to have their car searched than White people.
- Black people are 5.7% more likely to be arrested when stopped for a traffic violation than White people.
- Black people are 13.29% more likely to be arrested when stopped for an equipment violation than White people.
You can look at each locality using the JULIAN dashboard.