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Press Release

LULAC supports all Statutes against Racial Profiling.

A 2007 Comprehensive Racial Profiling bill will be introduced today by Rhode Island Rep. Joseph S. Almeida and Rhode Island Senator Rhoda E. Perry.

January 16, 2007

Contact: Lizette Jenness Olmos
(202) 833-6130 ext. 16
 

Washington, DC - The League of United Latin American Citizens strongly condemns discrimination and racial profiling, and encourages efforts today in Rhode Island to pass a comprehensive racial profiling bill.

“We applaud the leadership efforts of Representative Joseph S. Almeida and Senator Rhoda E. Perry in introducing the comprehensive racial profiling bill because we do not tolerate any kind of discrimination and racial profiling that targets individuals based on race, color and creed,” said LULAC National President Rosa Rosales. “LULAC applauds their efforts and urge that all the states follow their lead in passing this critical type of legislation.”

LULAC supports a strong statutory definition of racial profiling along with the institution of data collections systems by law enforcement. LULAC is concerned with the growth of hate groups and encourages Congress to strongly monitor agencies and their enforcement of hate-crimes law.

“As the oldest and largest civil rights organization we believe racial profiling is a gross violation of the constitution of the United States and what LULAC has fought for in the past 78 years,” said National Vice President Northeast Toula Politis Lugo.

If passed, this legislation would bar police from entering into immigration enforcement agreements with the federal government, like the agreement that former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney sought to enter into with ICE in December of 2006, require police officers to document in writing their “probable cause” or “reasonable suspicion” grounds for conducting a search, bar police officers from asking motor vehicle passengers for identification in the absence of a suspicion of criminal activity.

“We must stop racial profiling throughout the United States,” said Past National Vice President Northeast Regla Gonzalez. “This is a mere violation of our civil rights. Our rights have been violated and by all means we should defend it.”

LULAC opposes any effort to amend the US Constitution in any manner that reduces protection of any individual’s rights on the basis of national origin, race, religion, sexual orientation, age or disability.

The League of United Latin American Citizens, the oldest and largest Hispanic membership organization in the country, advances the economic conditions, educational attainment, political influence, health and civil rights of Hispanic Americans through community-based programs operating at more than 700 LULAC councils nationwide.

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Summary of Major Provisions in 2007
Comprehensive Racial Profiling Bill

Racial Profiling on the Highways:

• Requires police officers to document in writing their “probable cause” or “reasonable suspicion” grounds for conducting a search.
• Bans stops by police where police use a traffic violation as an excuse for pulling a car over for another reason. These stops are also known as “pretext” stops.
• Allows victims of racial profiling to make use of collected traffic stop and search data in court to raise a “rebuttable inference of discrimination” where the statistics so suggest.
• Requires certain uniform standards for the use of, and access to, police cruiser camera videotapes.
• Reestablishes traffic stop data collection, and requires every law enforcement agency to formally submit a report on a quarterly basis certifying that the data have been reviewed for disparities, indicating whether that review has found any patterns relating to officers, locations or practices that are responsible for the disparity, and specifying any actions taken in response to documented racial disparities.

Racial Profiling of Immigrants:

• Bars police officers from asking motor vehicle passengers for identification in the absence of a suspicion of criminal activity.
• Requires that any arrangements that police departments have with the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) be a matter of public record.
• Bars police from entering into immigration enforcement agreements with the federal government, like the agreement that former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney sought to enter into with ICE in December of 2006.
• Bars police from asking a person about his or her immigration status, except when required by federal law or in other limited circumstances.

Racial Profiling of Juveniles:

Restricts the use of so-called “consent searches” on juveniles. A consent search is a search in which the search is only permitted because the individual has given their consent.