Fitting the Profile

Profiling is a controversial enforcement technique where police consider numerous factors when targeting drivers they want to search or check an identity.

These factors include a driver’s characteristics; expensive or sporty brands of cars; out-of-town license plates; overly cautious driving habits; and the use of busy routes such as interstates.

In profiling stops, a minor traffic offense can be used as a pretext to stop the car. Although the motorist can refuse an officer’s subsequent request to search his car, some are hesitant that would send the signal they have something to hide.

States have “a dizzying array of traffic codes” that ensure that “if an officer is willing to follow you for a while, you’ll do something where you can be pulled over,” said David A. Harris, a law professor at the University of Toledo, who has done extensive research on pretextual traffic stops.

Federal legislation has been introduced by Rep. John Conyers Jr. (D-Mich.) to require states’ attorneys general to keep statistics on traffic stops, including information on race, age, circumstances and whether searches were carried out.