![]() Kalfani Ture, a criminologist and former Georgia police officer who is Black, said overstating the risks to officers compounded racial bias. In the deaths reviewed by The Times, Black drivers were overrepresented relative to the population. In applying for these grants, at least 20 states have used the number of traffic stops per hour to evaluate police performance, a practice that critics say encourages overpolicing. The federal government also contributes to the traffic stops with $600 million a year in highway safety grants that reward ticket writing. In dozens of encounters, officers stepped in front of moving vehicles or reached inside car windows, then fired their guns, claiming self-defense. More than three-quarters of the motorists were killed trying to flee. Many of the vehicle stops The Times reviewed began for common traffic violations like broken taillights, or for questioning about nonviolent offenses like shoplifting.įrom there, things escalated. That presumption of peril has been significantly overstated, but it has become ingrained in police culture and court precedents - contributing to impunity for most officers who use lethal force at vehicle stops. Yet the police consider them among the most dangerous things they do. Traffic stops - which are often motivated by hidden budgetary considerations because of the ticket revenue they generate - are the most common interactions between police officers and the public. Over the last five years, The Times found, the police killed more than 400 drivers or passengers who were not wielding a gun or a knife or under pursuit for a violent crime. Now, a New York Times investigation reveals the scope of such cases across the country - and why traffic stops for minor offenses can escalate into fatal encounters. So have several other seemingly avoidable deaths of motorists. When Daunte Wright was killed last spring by a police officer in Minnesota after being pulled over for expired registration tags, the case drew national attention.
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