Wilkins V. Maryland State Police Summary

As technology advances, the world is forced to adapt as an increasingly quick pace. Specifically, our justice system must consider the constitutionality of surveillance and other information gathering techniques and how they coincide with current interpretations of the Fourth Amendment which protects citizens against unreasonable searches and seizures. The Supreme Court addressed this issue in the 2013 case of Maryland v King explicitly related to the legality of DNA collection of individuals early in the booking process for serious crimes. In a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court ruled that pre-conviction DNA collection of those arrested for serious crimes is constitutional and does not violate the Fourth Amendment; a decision that will

III. Credibility- I found these statistics along with other information on drivinglaws.org and various other sites.

In many ways, the opinion in this case represents a final step in the creation of

Legewie, Joscha. "Racial Profiling and Use of Force in Police Stops: How Local Events Trigger Periods of Increased Discrimination." American Journal of Sociology, vol. 122, no. 2, Sept. 2016, pp. 379-424. EBSCOhost, ezproxy.uno.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=sih&AN=118161270&site=eds-live&scope=site.

One of the most imminent threats looming within American society is race relations. America is a melting pot of different races, cultures, and religions, yet the matter of racial profiling still remains prominent today. By definition it is considered “an activity carried out by enforcers of the law wherein they investigate or stop any individual in traffic or round up people of the same race or ethnicity for crime suspicion” (NYLN.org ). This profiling has become a significant catalyst in the tension that has been ensuing between minorities and the government. Hostility has grown due to the apparent and intentional targeting of “brown people”, and

Data shows the racial profiling and illegal pullovers and search of cars driven by Black, and Hispanic males are a police action performed throughout the nation. “Even Famous Black celebrities and prominent African Americans say police have victimized them. They say they have been pulled over and subjected to a vehicle and physical search by police without probable cause, based on none other than the fact they are the black men driving an expensive car. Thus, the Police assumed they must be a drug dealer or involved in some criminal behavior to afford such an expensive car. “DWB” protocols by police and their departments according to the ACLU is also a violation of a person’s civil rights that are illegal, invasive as well as intrusive (8).”

Sample: The sample group I am using for this study is all drivers in the United States and more in Florida. Also I am looking in to Drivers that choose to DUI.

The practice of targeting individuals for police investigation based on their race alone in the last few years has been an increasingly prominent issue in American society. Numerous magazines, newspapers, and journals have explored the issue of race-motivated police actions. Recently, the ABA Journal did a study of New Jersey and Pennsylvania traffic stops from 1998 to 2001, concluding that black drivers were more likely to be pulled over and arrested than whites. The study also delves into the legal ramifications of the 1996 United States Supreme Court ruling in the Whren v. United States case, which held that police officers subjective motivation for stopping a motorist on the

"Racial profiling” can hold a variety of meanings. As defined by the American Civil Liberties Union, however, racial profiling is "the discriminatory practice by law enforcement officials of targeting individuals for suspicion of crime based on the individual 's race, ethnicity, religion or national origin" (“Racial Profiling”). Every day, blacks are stopped much more frequently for aimless searches and minor infractions than their white counterparts. Several African Americans share experiences like these, such as Roscoe Van Pelt, who was violently snatched off the street and crammed into a squad car after the ludicrous crime of jaywalking (Walsh). A more extreme example would be the case of Sandra Bland, who was brutally beaten following failure to signal a lane change (Schuppe). Incidents like these occur far too frequently in black communities, all for the color of their skin.

Nancy Drew Suders was hired March 1998 by the Pennsylvania State Police (PSP) as a police communications operator for the McConnellsburg barracks, where her three male supervisors subjected her to a "continuous barrage of sexual harassment." Suders said one of the supervisors Sergeant Eric D. Easton, talked to her repeatedly about sex with animals. The second, Corporal Eric B. Prendergast sat on her desk and made gestures simulating oral sex. The third, Patrol Corporal William D. Baker made obscene gestures as many as five or ten times a night. In June 1998, Suders spoke to PSP's Equal Employment Opportunities Officer, Virginia Smith-Elliot, and told her that she "might need some help." Two months later Suders contacted Smith-Elliot

The number of souls in this country is currently reckoned at just under three hundred million (American FactFinder 1). Of these are calculated to be approximately two hundred million licensed drivers (Licensed Drivers – Our Nation’s Highways – 2000 1); from which number I subtract twenty-five million who already drive while intoxicated (MADD Online 1). This being granted, there remains one hundred seventy-five million drivers who do not currently drive while intoxicated. There remains approximately one hundred seventy-five million drivers, their families, friends, and peers who will be

Being stopped by police for no apparent reason is unfortunately a common complaint among people of color The phenomenon is known as "driving while black (or brown)," and it is so widespread that the complaints are now basically routine news.

Racial profiling is an example of police brutality, which is defined by Gross and Livingston (2002) as “the practice of some officers of stopping motorists of certain racial or ethnic groups because the officer believe that these groups are more likely than others to commit certain types of crimes” (p.1413). Therefore, individuals are treated unfairly by law enforcement solely based on their race. This type of mistreatment is unmerited and ultimately a violation of an individual’s rights. However, in many instances the courts do not find it a violation of their civil rights based on the fact that racial profiling is difficult to prove. Often, prosecutors are disinclined in bringing forth a case against officers on this particular matter. Officers are permitted to stop and search individuals and their vehicles whenever there is reasonable suspicion, however, there has been studies that prove that some law enforcement officers restrict these rights primarily to minority groups. Bowling and Phillips found that although there was no formal monitoring of use of these powers, it was concluded that it was particularly heavy use of these powers against ethnic minorities, largely of young black people (as cited in Sharp & Atherton, 2007, p. 747) . In several cases, officers argue that they reasonably pulled an individual over for other probable grounds such as: traffic violations, suspicious behavior, etc., with race never being an

1. I would like to start by just stating a few statistics related to drunk driving.

U.S. Department of Transportation. "About Drunk Driving." MADD - About Drunk Driving. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 25 Jan. 2011. Web. 23