Study Finds That Cops 25X Less Likely To Shoot Unarmed Black Suspects
By V. Saxena, December 18, 2014.
A study conducted by researchers from Washington State University Spokane reveals that the cops are 25x less likely “to erroneously shoot unarmed black suspects than they” are to erroneously shoot unarmed white suspects, reports PoliceOne. The study also uncovered that cops hesitate “significantly longer before shooting unarmed suspects who [are] black, compared to armed subjects who [are] white or Hispanic”:
“In sum,” writes Dr. Lois James, a research assistant professor with the university’s Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology who headed the study, “this research found that participants displayed significant bias favoring Black suspects” in their shooting decisions.
Dr. Lois James also argues that the computer-based racial bias studies pushed out by liberals “bear almost no resemblance” to real life. Take for instance studies where participants sitting in front of a PC view images of black and white suspects holding something (a wallet, a cell phone, a gun, etc.) and then decide whether to shoot or not shoot. Liberals infer racial bias because participants tend to more quickly shoot black suspects than white suspects, and then use this to argue that the police racially discriminate against blacks.
This process lacks what James calls “external validity” — that is, it doesn’t come close to reflecting real-world circumstances, and thus its conclusions are of limited value. “[T]he complex process involved” in deciding to shoot or not shoot and then actually firing a gun is “dramatically different” from the simple reflex of pressing a button, she writes.
Dr. Lois James plans to conduct additional studies “to investigate whether this finding is replicated across larger and more diverse law enforcement samples.” If her findings do indeed replicate themselves, then it will be definitive proof that the same police officers who liberals loathe practice greater restraint with black suspects, all because they fear any potential racial backlash.
Story Lead via [FrontPage Magazine, Weasel Zippers]
http://downtrend.com/vsaxena/cops-25x-less-likely-to-shoot-black-suspects/
