Police to gather race-based data at traffic stops
Posted May 4, 2012 03:06:52 PM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Ottawa Police will begin collecting race-based data on traffic stops, following a human rights complaint by a man who claims he was racially profiled seven years ago.
In 2005, Chad Aiken was pulled over while driving his mother’s Mercedes Benz. He alleges he was stopped because he is African-Canadian.
The concession is part of a settlement with the Ontario Human Rights Commission. Police must begin collecting the data for a two-year period starting sometime in the next 12 months.
Police Chief Charles Bordeleau said they will use the information to prove police officers in Ottawa are not biased and they do not conduct racial profiling.
“The settlement speaks to the issue that we understand that this is an important issue for our community, for our minority communities and that the police service is committed to ensuring that we are demonstrating that we are a bias-free organization,” said Bordeleau. He added Ottawa is a leader in Canada when it comes to this issue.
“The Police Services Board has a racial profiling policy, and there is even an anti-bias training course for officers.
“I am very confident in the professionalism of our members,” Bordeleau said. “I have no doubt that at the end of this project, it will demonstrate that the Ottawa Police Service is a bias-free policing organization, because our members care about the community. They understand the importance as far as accountability [goes].”
At the end of the two-year period, the data will be handed over to the human rights commission for analysis.
