Mike A. Kelly, The Salt Lake Tribune
January 19, 2001, Friday
Copyright 2001 The Salt Lake Tribune
The Salt Lake Tribune
January 19, 2001, Friday
(SALT LAKE CITY) -- A bill that would require Utah law enforcement agencies to keep racial and gender statistics on traffic stops got a nod Thursday.
The House Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice Committee approved 5-1 the measure sponsored by Rep. Duane Bourdeaux, D-Salt Lake City.
“It must stop,” Bourdeaux said of the issue of profiling.
Last year, the House passed the bill, but it was not acted on by senators.
Ron Stallworth, a veteran with the Department of Public Safety, said he has seen profiling occur.
“Profiling based on racial and ethnic [factors] has occurred in the state of Utah,” he said in an Associated Press story. “We must acknowledge that: A. It has occurred; B. How do we move forward to address it?”
Stallworth said better police training could reduce the problem.
If the measure passes, Utah drivers would be asked to check a racial category when they get their licenses.
The dissenting vote came from Rep. Brent Parker, R-Wellsville, who said he is concerned about the difficulty in defining race. He said there are a number of factors by which race might be defined, including blood, birthplace, and skin color.
“What are the police going to do,” he said, “have a shade card?”
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