The Chicago Tribune published a story about the ACLU of Illinois' recently released report which analyzed 2013 data from the Illinois Traffic Stop Study. The report findings reveal significant racial disparity in the nature and number of consent searches and "dog sniff" searches carried out by Illinois State Police (ISP) and the Chicago Police Department (CPD). Specifically, ISP troopers are 2½ times more likely to search Hispanic motorists compared to white motorists, but white motorists are 2½ times more likely than Hispanic motorists to be found with contraband. Regarding the data from the CPD, the report notes that white motorists were more likely than black and Hispanic motorists to be found with contraband. The Chicago Tribune spoke with ACLU attorney Adam Schwartz:

Schwartz of the ACLU said the data show that police officers have a higher threshold of suspicion before seeking to search white drivers than they do black and Latino drivers.

"And we believe that that is unfair," he said. "And we believe this practice is not necessary for the police to keep our communities safe."

Read the entire article.