Racial & Ethnic profiling
The Hispanic and African American minority groups have been the subject of law enforcement profiling. Research evidence has strongly showed that these groups are involved in crime beyond their population size, with data showing disparities in offending and which have been related to differential treatment in the justice system.
Racial profiling of Hispanic and African American groups affects the whole of the Criminal Justice System by tainting public image. More specifically, racial profiling leaves the affected group with the perception that they are being targeted especially by the law enforcement officers. Whether a perception or practice, the beliefs on racial profiling lead to mistrust and cynicism by the minority towards the system of criminal justice (Hurwitz &Peffley, 2010). Due to this, individuals fail to cooperate with officers in the system due to mistrust and respond in the wrong way towards them because they fear being harmed. Some of the officers may have a perception that such groups are innately more likely to offend and hence are inclined to employ more force while responding to situation and hence escalating the situation (Hurwitz &Peffley,2010).
Racial profiling cannot be justified in Criminal Justice System since it adds up to stereotyping. Law enforcement officers should ensure that the information they are working in is trustworthy which prevents acting upon general assumptions regarding a person of particular races. However, it is not possible to ignore various commonalities or features in terms of appearance of a potential criminal but in such a case it requires the officer to use specific information (Smith & Mason, 2016). This does not mean that an officer should rely on some generalized stereotypes but use race only when pursuing a specific lead.
References
Smith, A. L., & Mason, S. E. (2016). The Age of Racial Profiling in the Context of Terrorism. Modern Psychological Studies, 21(2).
Hurwitz, J., &Peffley, M. (2010). And justice for some: Race, crime, and punishment in the US criminal justice system. Canadian Journal of Political Science, 43, 457–479
