In too many places in this country, black boys and black men, Latino boys, Latino men, they experience being treated differently by law enforcement -- in stops and in arrests, and in charges and incarcerations. The statistics are clear, up and down the criminal justice system; there’s no dispute.There is no dispute such individuals engage in more per capita criminal behavior and, as a result, attract more police attention than do whites. After police experience many instances of this heightened propensity to crime, it becomes difficult for officers to hold onto the presumption of innocence with regard to young men of color.
In an ideal world, officers would never lose the presumption of innocence. However, the world is not ideal and shows no signs of becoming so.
