gathering data on racial distributions in local policing and in the criminal justice system.
tracking state and local legislation affecting policing and other justice issues.
Actions Taken:
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We evaluated the setting of pretrial bail in Calvert County to determine if the setting of cash bail was detrimental to low-income individuals. Compared to the other 23 counties in Maryland, Calvert County had the lowest usage of cash bail. We did not find any blatant discrimination in how pretrial bail was set.
We analyzed data from 41,499 traffic stops (which did not include stops based on radar or vascar technology) conducted by members of the Calvert County Sheriff's Department from 2016 to 2020. For Blacks, 3.63% of stops resulted in searches and 1.49% of stops resulted in arrests. For Whites, searches and arrests were 2.62% and 1.12%, respectively. The difference in the frequency of search and the frequency of arrests involving Blacks and Whites were both highly statistically significant in this analysis.
We also evaluated a subset of 1,783 traffic-stops leading to a fine or court appearance of Calvert residents, and 1,360 nonresidents to try to determine if there was racial discrimination in criminal arrests following traffic stops that resulted in arrest or citation. For Calvert residents, there was no significant difference between the arrest rates of Blacks and Whites whose stops resulted in a fine or a need for a court appearance. Non-residents Whites were more likely to be arrested than non-resident Blacks after stops requiring payment of a fine or a court appearance.
Our analysis of traffic stop data raises the possibility that there is an unconscious racial bias in the decision to search a car which has been stopped. The solution may be to advocate for better diversity and racial bias training for deputies.
Our data does not allow us to draw conclusions about whether or not Blacks are being stopped in a discriminatory manner by the Calvert County Sheriff's Department.
Due to a new Maryland law, Calvert County must establish a Police Accountability Board by July 2022. Members of the committee attended a town ball meeting to evaluate and comment on the plan proposed by the Calvert County Board of Commissioners. We will continue to follow progress on the final plan and the activities of the board once established. You can follow the progress of the
Calvert County Police Accountability Board.
In concert with Catholic Social Teaching on “The Dignity of Work and Rights of Workers”, we are researching ways to advocate for fair wages and benefits for workers in our community and church.
To join our efforts, contact us at the email address found
here.
Please follow these links to find out more about racism in the U.S. and what we can do to combat it:
