racial bias
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Department of Justice Says San Francisco Police Have 'Institutionalized Bias'
After six months investigating the San Francisco Police Department, the U.S. Department of Justice has found disparities in traffic stops, post-stop searches and use of deadly force against African Americans, as well as implicit and institutionalized bias against minority groups. The investigation, prompted by the shooting death of Mario Woods at the hands of San…
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American Nightmare: Counsel of Record Christina Swarns Talks Buck v. Davis
Editor’s note: For more information about the Buck v. Davis case, read “Racial Bias Got Duane Buck the Death Sentence; the Supreme Court Can Fix It,” also on The Root. Christina Swarns, litigation director of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, has her work cut out for her Wednesday. Swarns is lead counsel in…
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Airbnb Tackles Its Discrimination Allegations Head-On, Establishes New Policies
Earlier this year, home-rental site Airbnb came under heavy scrutiny after black users of the platform took to social media to describe the discrimination they faced. Most noted that after renters saw their photos, which were included in the booking request, they were denied accommodations. The hashtag #AirbnbWhileBlack popped up on Twitter and went viral.…
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Chicago Police Move to Fire 5 Cops Involved in Shooting Death of Laquan McDonald
Chicago police are looking to fire five officers who were involved in the 2014 shooting death of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald, The Guardian reports. Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson has filed administrative charges against five officers, including Police Officer Jason Van Dyke, who shot Laquan 16 times. As CNN notes, with his criminal indictment, Van Dyke…
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NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton to Step Down in September
About a week after announcing that he had no intention of staying into a second term, New York City Police Commissioner William J. Bratton has formally announced his plans to step down in September, NPR reports. During the announcement made on Tuesday, Mayor Bill de Blasio said that Chief of Department James O’Neill will be…
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Supreme Court Sides With Black Death Row Inmate Convicted by All-White Jury, Orders New Trial
The Supreme Court of the United States ruled in favor of a black death row inmate Monday, declaring that prosecutors in Georgia went against the Constitution and blocked black jurors from his trial nearly 30 years ago, USA Today reports. Timothy Foster’s 1987 case came up before the Supreme Court after a series of notes…
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Report: Software Used to Predict Future Crime Shows Racial Bias
Risk-assessment scores, which are becoming ever more common in courtrooms across the nation, are often used to make important decisions regarding a defendant’s freedom or the terms of the defendant’s freedom. However, according to ProPublica, the scores—which are based on an algorithm whose creators claim can predict defendants’ likelihood of committing another crime—seem to show…