The Fayetteville Police Department is changing its search policies in response to accusations of racial profiling. The department stopped and searched three times more black drivers than white ones last year. That concerned local activist groups, who want a review of the traffic stops. Lieutenant Chris Davis says Fayetteville Police are now requiring officers to give a detailed written reason for each search they conduct based on probable cause.
"We're basically just taking an extra step just to, I guess in this case, give citizens the reason for our probable cause written on the back of our citation - our warning citation - in addition to what we already do on the traffic stop report."
State law does not require that degree of explanation for searches. The department will host public information sessions about racial profiling later this month. Fayetteville Police have also sought additional training from the U.S. Justice Department and are installing more cameras in police cars.
