Chapel Hill and Carrboro police would do well to follow the lead of other local law enforcement agencies in requiring written consent to conduct vehicle searches without probable cause at traffic stops.
This kind of policy has already been implemented by the Durham Police Department in response to a UNC study on state traffic stops from 2000-2011. That report found that black people were 77 percent more likely to have their vehicles searched at a traffic stop compared to white people. Cars driven by Hispanic people were 96 percent more likely to be searched.
The Orange County Sheriff’s Department has also adopted the written consent policy, according to The Chapel Hill News.
According to data shown at a January NAACP forum in Chapel Hill, black drivers made up 26 percent of Chapel Hill traffic stops, despite only constituting 8.6 percent of the town’s population. Community members at the forum pointed to this as proof of racial profiling, though police officials defended police intentions. Nonetheless, the departments’ apparent openness is encouraging.
Requiring consent for searches would provide an additional dimension of transparency to police activity. A system of written consent ensures formal rules are in place to guarantee the rights of all involved in traffic stops. It would also provide comforting documentation that police officers are following the letter of the law.
