AUDIT TEAM MING UP ON NS, >> NOW TO OUR NEWS, 4 JAX I TEAM INVESTIGATION AUDITING
BIAS LOOKING AT IS PULLED OVER
BY THE FLORIDA HIGHWAY PATROL.
RECENTLY THE FHP AUDITED
ITSELF USING A SAMPLE OF
TRAFFIC STOPS ACROSS THE STATE
TO SEE IF ANY PARTICULAR RACE
IS BEING SINGLED OUT. SO THE I
TEAM DUG EVEN DEEPER ANALYZING
NEARLY 3 MILLION STOPS OVER
THE LAST 5 YEARS. THAT
INCLUDED THE RACE OF EACH
DRIVER AND THEN COMPARE THAT
BREAKDOWN.
>> TO THE NEW U.S. CENSUS
DATA. WHAT WE FOUND MAY OR MAY
NOT SURPRISE YOU.
>> FLORIDA HIGHWAY PATROL
TROOPERS TRAFFIC STOPS ARE
UNDER THE MICROSCOPE OF THE
AGENCY’S INSPECTOR GENERAL.
WHOSE GOAL IS TO DETERMINE IF
THE RACE OF DRIVERS BEING
TARGETED ON FLORIDA ROADS FHP
MASTER SERGEANT DYLAN BRYAN
POINTS OUT THE TROOPERS OFTEN
CAN’T EVEN SEE THE PERSON
BEHIND THE WHEEL. BUT INSTEAD
THEY’RE FOCUSED ON WHETHER OR
NOT THE DRIVER IS OBEYING
TRAFFIC. LAWS WERE STOPPING A
VIOLATION.
>> WE’RE STOPPING THE VEHICLE.
IN MOST CASES. WE DON’T KNOW
OR AT THAT POINT CAN SEE WHO’S
DRIVING THE VEHICLE WHEN WE
SEE THE VIOLATION OCCURRED.
>> AFTER EVERY STOP, THE
TROOPER COMPLETE A TRAFFIC
STOP DATA REPORT RECORDING
DEMOGRAPHIC INFORMATION ABOUT
THE DRIVER AND THE OUTCOME OF
THE STOP, ITS DATA THAT CAN BE
REVIEWED BY SUPERVISORS AND
OTHERS IN THE HIGHWAY PATROL.
BRIAN SAYS THE FINDINGS FROM
THE OFFICE OF THE INSPECTOR
GENERAL IS A COMMITMENT TO
FULL TRANSPARENCY TO THE
PUBLIC REGARDING WHO IS BEING
PULLED OVER THE NEWS. 4 JAX. I
TEAM DID ITS OWN ANALYSIS OF
TRAFFIC STOP DATA FROM FHP AND
FOUND BETWEEN JANUARY 2000, 16
IN APRIL 2000. 21 STATEWIDE.
48.7% OF THE STOPS INVOLVED
WHITE DRIVERS. 21.6% INVOLVED.
BLACK DRIVERS. 25.3% INVOLVE
HISPANIC DRIVERS AND 1.3%
INVOLVED. ASIAN DRIVERS TO
GIVE YOU AN IDEA OF HOW THAT
COMPARES TO FLORIDA’S OVERALL
POPULATION, THE 2020 CENSUS
FOUND THAT 51.5% OF FLORIDIANS
ARE WHITE. 14.5% ARE BLACK.
26.5% ARE HISPANIC AND 2.9%
ARE ASIAN. THE DATA REVEALS
THAT THE PROPORTION OF STOPS
OF AFRICAN AMERICAN DRIVERS IS
HIGHER THAN THEIR PROPORTION
OF THE POPULATION. WHILE THE
PERCENTAGE OF STOPS THAT WERE
WHITE, HISPANIC AND ASIAN
DRIVERS WERE LOWER THAN THEIR
SHARES OF THE POPULATION. THE
NEWS 4 JAX, I TEAM THEN LOOKED
AT JUST THE TRAFFIC STOPS FOR
TROOP G WHICH COVERS 9
NORTHEAST FLORIDA COUNTIES
INCLUDING DUVAL 60.2% OF THE
TRAFFIC STOPS OR OF WHITE
DRIVERS. 27 1% ARE BLACK 0.5%
ARE HISPANIC AND 1.7% ARE
ASIAN. COMPARE THAT TO THE
2020 CENSUS DATA FOR THE
COUNTIES IN TROOP G WHERE
60.9% OF PEOPLE ARE WHITE.
19.8% ARE BLACK. 10.1% ARE
HISPANIC AND 3.8% ARE ASIAN
FHP INSPECTOR GENERAL LOOKED
AT DATA FOR TROOPERS IN ITS
TROOPS STATEWIDE. LOOKING AT
THE GENDER AND RACE OF THE
DRIVER STOPPED AS WELL AS THE
TROOPERS CHARACTERISTICS. THE
DATA IS THEN COMPARED TO
CENSUS DATA FOR EACH TROOPERS
TERRITORY IN TROOP G THE AUDIT
STARTED WITH 9 TROOPERS, ALL
RANDOMLY SELECTED INFORMATION
THAT WAS PROVIDED IN THAT
AUDIT.
>> YOU KNOW, FROM THE TRAFFIC
STOP DATA REPORT SHOWED SOME
VARIANCES AND TRAFFIC STOPS
AND 3 OFFICERS. THOSE 3
OFFICERS WERE THEN LOOKED AT A
LITTLE BIT CLOSER. THAT CLOSER
LOOK REVEALED THAT 2 OF THE 3
TROOPERS IN QUESTION.
>> WE’RE IN THE CONTRABAND
INTERDICTION UNIT WHICH DEALS
WITH ACTIVITIES INVOLVING
ILLEGAL DRUGS. SERGEANT BRIAN
SAYS UNLIKE TROOPERS ON THE
ROAD, THE INTERDICTION UNIT IS
WORKING OFF POLICE
INTELLIGENCE AND THEY HAVE
ALREADY IDENTIFIED THE SUSPECT
BEFORE THE TRAFFIC STOP AND
SOMETIMES WERE REQUESTED TO
MAKE TRAFFIC STOPS ON BEHALF
OF ANOTHER AGENCY.
>> YOU KNOW, SPECIFIC
INFORMATION, VERY DETAILED
INFORMATION SAYING, HEY, WE
NEED THAT CAR STOPPED. FHP
LEADERS SAID THEY CLEARED THE
3RD TROOPER IN QUESTION AFTER
A RANDOM REVIEW OF 25 VIDEOS.
>> TAKEN FROM THE OFFICER’S
DASH CAMERA TROOPER SAY THEIR
INVESTIGATION REVEALED THERE
WASN’T ANY BICE.
>> IF YOU’RE STOPPED BY THE
FLORIDA HIGHWAY PATROL, IT’S
NOT PERSONAL. THIS IS
SOMETHING THAT YOU KNOW, THAT
WE’VE NOTICED A HAZARDOUS
VIOLATION. AND THAT’S THE ONLY
THING THAT WE’RE TRYING TO
CORRECT.
>> AND AS FOR MORE EVIDENCE
THAT THE FLORIDA HIGHWAY
PATROL REVIEWS TRAFFIC STOP
DATA. WE LEARNED THAT LAST
YEAR A STATE TROOPER HERE IN
NORTH FLORIDA WAS INVESTIGATED
FOR REPORTING FALSE
INFORMATION. IN FACT, THE
INSPECTOR GENERAL FOUND HE
FAILED TO ENTER MULTIPLE
TRAFFIC STOPS INTO THE
TRACKING SYSTEM AND OTHERS
WHERE HE DIDN’T ACTUALLY GIVE
THE DRIVER A WARNING, EVEN
THOUGH HE RECORDED THAT HE HAD