Contact:
Michelle Glass, 541-292-8201
michelle@oregonaction.org
Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum will hear input from Southern Oregon community members about the effects of police profiling and public suggestions for addressing the issue
What:
Police profiling continues to be a serious problem that affects Oregonians in communities across the state. Incidents of profiling can result in negative emotional, psychological, physical and financial trauma that disrupts lives and creates ripple effects for families.
On Thursday, members of the community will share their personal experiences with profiling with Oregon’s Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum. During the listening session, Attorney General Rosenblum will also share a summary of the Oregon Task Force on Law Enforcement Profiling’s work to date and community leaders will offer guidance for an effective process to investigate incidents of profiling and end the practice among law enforcement in Oregon.
When/Where:
Thursday, November 5, at 6:00 p.m.
Rogue Community College / Southern Oregon University Higher Education Center
101 S. Bartlett
Room 129B
Medford, OR 97501
Who:
Oregon Action Board Member Ricardo Lujan and other members of the community will statements of personal experiences with police profiling.
To speak with Ricardo Lujan about his story, you can contact him at 760.810.2121 or ricardolujan@cnpls.net. To connect with other community members who will be testifying on Thursday evening or to receive more information about the statewide effort to end profiling, please contact Michelle Glass at 541.292.8201 or michelle@oregonaction.org.
Why:
Currently in Oregon, each law enforcement agency is left to decide their own definition and process on profiling. Profiling occurs in every part of the state and impacts many different communities, and until the Oregon Legislature passed House Bill 2002 in July 2015, there had been no coordinated state policy to address it.
House Bill 2002 banned the practice of profiling as a law enforcement tactic. It also created the Law Enforcement Profiling Work Group—a governor-appointed committee that includes the Attorney General, law enforcement, community groups and members of the public—tasked with following up on transparency and accountability. The next step is for that workgroup to propose a process to identify patterns or practices of profiling, identify methods to address and correct these practices and biased policies, and prepare a report identifying any additional statutory changes that are needed to achieve these goals.
People in low-income neighborhoods and communities of color are targeted the most, leading to higher arrest and conviction rates among people of color generally—and African-Americans specifically. Many are already struggling to make ends meet and risk harsher penalties and extra fees when they can’t afford to pay the fines that often result from unfair profiling—putting their jobs on the line and their families at risk.
While the Oregon legislature passed legislation to ban police profiling in 2015, there is still no structure in place to effectively identify, record, and correct any profiling practices by Oregon law enforcement agencies.
By ending profiling, Oregon will start to change the culture of policing, making neighborhoods safer and communities stronger.