Traffic Stops Turn Deadly: Nearly 1 Death per Week

Nationwide, police pull over more than 50,000 drivers on average each day, amounting to more than 20 million motorists annually, according to the Stanford Open Policing Project.

Now, with the trial of former Minnesota officer Kim Porter on charges of first- and second-degree manslaughter in the fatal shooting of Duante Wright, many are turning the spotlight on police traffic stops for their unique potential to escalate into violence. 

While civilians lose their lives in a fraction of the cases, law enforcement researchers and experts say “say traffic stops can quickly turn into high-intensity, potentially fatal encounters because of the unknowns involved — who the drivers and passengers are, what weapons they may have or what they’re thinking, putting officers on the defensive before they even approach the vehicle,” according to ABC News. 

A New York Times investigation found that in the last five years, police have killed more than 400 people during traffic stops — but these individuals were not wielding a deadly weapon, or under pursuit for a violent crime. 

This statistic breaks down to more than one death a week across the country during a traffic stop, leaving advocates to beg the question, how could this happen?

Christopher Slobogin, the director of Vanderbilt Law School’s criminal justice program, told ABC News that officers have to mentally take in and process many factors when they approach a vehicle. 

“Police are trained to watch for sudden movements, and to shoot or take other protective steps whenever they see or think they see a gun in someone’s hands,” Slobogin said. 

“If you wait until a gun is pointed at you to shoot, it’ll be too late,” Slobogin continued, as quote by ABC News. “Police also become more aggressive when people are not immediately compliant with their commands, which may make some motorists even less compliant, especially when they think the commands are unreasonable.”

See Also: Will ‘Wrong Gun’ Plea Work for Cop Who Shot Daunte Wright?

Experts Say: ‘Prejudice Can Play a Role’

In the case of Duane Wright, many are quick to point out the racial undertones in the dynamic of a white officer and a Black victim.

Experts and research from the Stanford Open Policing Project have uncovered that officers use discretion when making traffic stops, and can be racially biased, particularly against Black drivers. Data shows that Black drivers were about 20 percent more likely than white drivers to be stopped by officers across the county, ABC News details. 

In an ABC News analysis of traffic stops in major U.S. cities, almost every location examined shows at least some disparity in traffic stops based on race.

Looking at Berkely, California as an example, The Crime Report has detailed that experts noticed the crime data discovery that law enforcement officers were disproportionately stopping people of color. 

Black people make up only 8 percent of Berkeley’s population, yet account for 34 percent of vehicle stops—4.3 times the percent of the population, the Berkeley Side details.

Additional Reading: Training on Taser Use Still Flawed, Experts Admit\

Andrea Cipriano is Associate Editor of TCR.