06-08-2016 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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include components about diversity and racial profiling, working with people with disabilities, including mental health and domestic abuse. Police in Minnesota are mandated by the state only for annual training in the use of force and in emergency vehicle operation/pursuit driving every five years. In addition, each local agency must have a written policy on arrest procedures for domestic violence. Local departments set any additional requirements. TRAINING TO AVOID RACIAL PROFILING Racial Profiling is avoided through hiring, policy and training, according to Falcon Heights/Lauderdale. They have had no complaints in the five years since their squad cars have been equipped with cameras. Ramsey County focuses on character when hiring. They also report that most complaints have been eliminated since installing cameras. The Sheriff personally reviews all complaints. Maplewood has had no formal complaints about profiling in the past two years. However, they believe there are definitely issues around implicit bias that respond to training. IMPLICIT BIAS Implicit Bias, also known as implicit social cognition, refers to the attitudes or stereotypes that affect our understanding, actions, and decisions in an unconscious manner. These biases, which encompass both favorable and unfavorable assessments, are activated involuntarily and without an individual’s awareness or intentional control. Residing deep in the subconscious, these biases are different from known biases that individuals may choose to conceal for the purposes of social and/or political correctness. Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity It has been found that not just race, but apparent socio-‐‑economic status stimulates bias. It is believed responsible for what can appear as racial profiling. (In 2015, ACLU-‐‑MN looked at 96,000 arrests in Minneapolis and found that black citizens were 8.7 times more likely to be arrested for minor offenses.) Experiments have shown that “triggers are pulled faster when the target is an African American male,” even by black officers. (NPR interview with Yara Mekawi of the U. of Illinois Aug 29, 2015) There are training options, in both on-‐‑line learning and the more expensive and time-‐‑consuming courses that utilize dramatic/realistic situations. Falcon Heights/Lauderdale officers do one year of non-‐‑bias police training annually. They just completed a training course with the Roseville Police Department. Roseville requires a 4-‐‑hour Diversity Awareness Training class by an outside resource person (also offered to city staff) and an online class.