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``Driving While Black'' Bill Passes Assembly and Senate

15 September 1999

``Driving While Black'' Bill Passes Assembly and Senate; Davis to Decide Racial Profiling Measure

    SACRAMENTO, Calif.--Sept. 15, 1999--California State Senator Kevin Murray's (D-Culver City) Senate Bill 78, known as the "Driving While Black" Bill, has received final approval in the California State Legislature.
    The bill had strong bi-partisan support, passing the Senate unanimously on Friday, Sept. 10, and is before Governor Davis for approval.
    Senate Bill 78 is designed to address frequent minority complaints that they are targeted by law enforcement because of their race. The measure calls for all California law enforcement agencies to record the race of the driver they pull over in traffic stops, the reason for the stop, whether a search was conducted, and if the driver was ticketed or arrested.
    "For law enforcement to be effective," said Murray, "the community must have confidence in them. A large segment of the population has lost that confidence. This bill will begin the process of repairing that confidence by assessing the breadth of the problem."
    President Bill Clinton, as well as California Attorney General Bill Lockyer, have called for the collection of such data. A previous study in Maryland found great disparity in the numbers of minority and non-minority motorists stopped.