Case 1:17-cv-00099-JKB Document 302-1 Filed 03/26/20 Page 22 of 230
initial in-person contact. Participants were not selected via zip code because some zip codes overlap into Baltimore County. •
Seattle/Baltimore: In Seattle, Blacks and Hispanics were oversampled because the Seattle Police had reportedly subjected Blacks and Hispanics to disparate treatment. IUR’s survey also included an oversample, but it was of African American/Black males since they were included in the DOJ Report as having experienced disparate treatment at the hands of BPD. We also chose to include a purposive sample of homeless participants considering evidence of this population’s contact with police.
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New Orleans/Baltimore: The Consent Decree Monitoring Team in New Orleans has conducted short quantitative community surveys over two-month periods. In contrast, the interviews in IUR’s survey often took up to 90 minutes to complete, the survey included questions that required recording both qualitative and quantitative responses, and the interviews were conducted during a nine month time frame.
The survey IUR conducted adhered to IUR’s commitment to analyzing the opinions of populations that are traditionally overlooked and harder to reach. IUR’s key findings are as follows: Public Safety and Crime: Where participants acknowledged Baltimore’s high crime and high murder rate, the majority of participants disagree or strongly disagree that BPD effectively reduces crime and keeps people safe. Satisfaction/Trust: Satisfaction with and trust in BPD are low, although participants reported wanting to build relationships with BPD and feeling conditionally comfortable communicating with BPD “if and when they had to.” Participants were more likely to report dissatisfaction with police services and disagreement that BPD officers are held accountable for misconduct and infractions. Many participants also observed BPD officers involved in racial profiling, using excessive force, and using verbally abusive language, and do not believe that BPD treats people fairly. Participants were also less likely to report observing BPD officers on patrol or meeting members of the community. Taken together, these findings indicate that BPD must make substantial progress to satisfy the objective of the Consent Decree to “build the bond of trust that must exist between the community and the City's police officers.” Empirical evidence shows that trust can be established or rebuilt by encouraging community input and increasing and enhancing community engagement efforts (Jackson & Ben, 2010; Johnson, 2015; Shah, 2015; Woolverton, 2018; Yuskel, 2013. Police-Community Engagement: Although community survey participants were more likely to report that BPD does not have a good working relationship with the community, less likely to observe BPD taking the time to meet members of the community/neighborhood, less likely to personally know the names or faces of BPD officers, and more likely nervous when they saw a BPD officer or police car, many participants feel self-confident enough to communicate comfortably with BPD, particularly if there is mutual respect, and want to improve relationships between BPD and
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