The Role of Race in Law Enforcement
Racial Profiling or Legitimate Use?
By RICHARD G. SCHOTT, J.D.

On May 14, 2001, three young African-American males were pulled over by the Indianapolis, Indiana, Police Department. According to one of the passenger’s stepfather, the stop was a blatant example of racial profiling. 1 According to the officers on the scene, it was a legitimate traffic stop for failure to signal a turn. Which one of these characterizations was correct? Were both viewpoints arguable?

Few issues in society today generate as much controversy as the issue of racial profiling. It was a recurrent topic of debate during the 2000 presidential campaign, and racial profiling remains a frequently debated and divisive issuein many local communities. The highway traffic practices of New Jersey and Maryland State Police troopers have been called into question as racially discriminatory. As a result, both departments have been required to compile exhaustive statistics on all future traffic stops. Other states have passed legislation requiring all law enforcement agencies within that state to maintain similar statistics.2 But, what is racial profiling? Are there legitimate uses for racial characteristics during an investigation or other law enforcement activity? It is critically important for law enforcement officers to understand the difference between legitimate and illegitimate uses of race in their law enforcement activities to maintain credibility within their communities.

This article explores the historical perspective of the use of race in the law, examines the constitutional challenges available to victims of racial profiling, and offers suggestions to rebut allegations of improper racial profiling.

It is important to define what is meant by racial profiling in this article and also to distinguish between the legitimate use of profiling and unlawful racial profiling. Profiles based on officers’ training and experience are legitimate tools in police work. For example, the “drug courier profile”3 has long been recognized as an investigative