Statewide — The California Racial and Identity Profiling Advisory (RIPA) Board, established by the Attorney General, convened virtually for its first full board meeting of 2025 on March 13.
Board members, public officials and community representatives emphasized the analysis of the 2025 RIPA report, which scrutinized over 4.7 million vehicle and pedestrian stops conducted in 2023 by 539 law enforcement agencies across California.
A key discussion in the meeting revolved around the Stop Data Analysis Subcommittee, which reported on recent findings regarding racial disparities in police stops.
The 2025 RIPA report reveals significant disparities in stop rates among different racial and ethnic groups. Black individuals, who constitute approximately 5% of California’s population, accounted for 12.1% of all stops, indicating they were stopped 126% more frequently than expected based on their population proportion.
Similarly, Hispanic/Latiné individuals, representing about 40% of the population, were stopped 43.1% more frequently than expected. In contrast, White individuals, comprising 33.4% of the population, were stopped 4.38% less frequently than their population proportion.
Board member Lily Khadjavi, a professor in mathematics at Loyola Marymount University, highlighted the significance of analyzing stop data at a regional level.
“We created a rich list of topics for exploration in the coming report,” Khadjavi said. “In particular, looking at stop data by region and agency with the goal of identifying hot spots of police activities in order to better understand the nature and impact of agency policies and training.”
She further emphasized a focus on pedestrian and bicycle stops.
“Historically, in regions such as Los Angeles, pedestrians were sometimes more likely to be subject to some sort of search or frisk at higher rates than you’d see nationally,” Khadjavi said. “So being able to distinguish the type of stops that don’t involve a car may be very important.”
Additionally, the board examined the use of consent searches, a long-standing concern regarding racial disparities in policing. Khadjavi pointed out a new aspect of the data.
“The data now will reflect the way in which consent is demonstrated, whether verbal, written, or even consent deemed implicit by the officer,” she said. “This information will provide a clearer picture of how different agencies conduct these searches.”
Board member Dr. John Dobard, Vice President of Policy and Programs at Catalyst California, discussed how policing policies affect public safety, particularly in Black and brown communities.
“The subcommittee decided they would like to focus on ways to increase public safety, particularly in Black and brown communities, as our theme,” Dobard said. “We’d like to examine different elements of this theme, such as the factors that contribute to communities being and feeling safe, the relationship between those factors and negative police interactions, and the consequences of over-policing.”
The board also discussed law enforcement practices related to “hot spot policing.” However, some members expressed concerns about the term.
“A police agency might say, ‘Oh, we’ve identified a hot spot in a community,’ but we need to be clear that we’re talking about agency or regional practices that are disproportionately affecting certain communities,” Khadjavi clarified.
The Accountability and Civilian Complaints Subcommittee emphasized the need for improved oversight of police conduct, particularly in cases involving youth interactions with law enforcement.
Board member LaWanda Hawkins, founder of Justice for Murdered Children, called for legislative action to ensure better tracking of police encounters with minors.
“We need to look into the age of those being stopped, because the first contact with law enforcement as a young person can determine how you react and how you deal with them as an adult,” Hawkins said. “This isn’t about saying anyone is doing something wrong, it’s about having the data to truly understand these encounters.”
For individuals aged 12–24, officers reported 823,773 stops in 2023, an increase from 815,360 in 2022.
Black and Native American youth experienced the highest rates of handcuffing and firearm pointing during stops.
Moreover, Black youth aged 15–17 had stops ending with no action taken at a rate of 13%, suggesting potential over-policing of this demographic.
The board revisited recommendations regarding police decertification under California’s SB 2, which aims to hold officers accountable for misconduct.
Hawkins emphasized the importance of expanding oversight beyond the current nine categories of serious misconduct.
“We’ve heard from other board members that there are things outside these nine categories that people are being stopped for, and we need to really look at this,” Hawkins said. “We need to hear from the community about these other categories that may not be included.”
One of the most pressing issues raised in the meeting was the impact of high-speed police chases, which have led to fatalities in California and across the country. Board member Chauncee Smith, Associate Director of Reimagine Justice & Safety at Catalyst California, called for the board to examine this issue more closely.
“All too often, these fatal police chases arise from stops for relatively minor traffic violations, and the consequences for public safety are significant,” Smith said. “The national data shows that Black people are four times more likely than white people to die from a fatal police car crash.”
Khadjavi stressed the importance of sharing key findings with the public.
“We want this information to be available in a digestible way, which is vital for transparency and building public trust,” Khadjavi said.
