Tag Archives: racial bias

Discretion and Discrimination: Civil Citations versus Arrests for Marijuana Possession

by: Regan Woodbury On June 30th, 2015 Miami-Dade commissioners voted “to let police treat marijuana possession the same way they do littering and loitering—by issuing a citation with a $100 fine that keeps the offense out of the criminal justice system.”[1] The measure passed by a 10-3 margin and allows for this arrest-alternative in possession […]

The United States’ Response to Crime: Racial Bias is Alive and Well

BY: SAWYEH ESMAILI The United States has had the world’s highest incarceration rate since 2002.[1] A racialized perception of crime and a broken criminal justice system are behind the globe’s largest prison population. Our country’s response to crime and the media’s coverage of those who perpetrate it reflect the deeply ingrained racial bias of the […]