The Front Burner: Are traffic stops routine or targeted?

The nexus between race and law enforcement is never far from American consciousness, and interest surged in Central Florida in early June when a dash-cam video went viral. Showing an exchange between Orange-Osceola State Attorney Aramis Ayala and Orlando Police Department officers during a traffic stop, the video sparked outrage as well as shoulder shrugs as OPD officers seemed to have a tough time explaining to Ayala, who is African-American, why she had been stopped.

Was this stop an example of racial profiling or run-of-the-mill policing? The debate on that question has raged on the opinion pages of the Orlando Sentinel, on talk radio, on social media and websites around the world.

Moving beyond the specific traffic stop of the state attorney, today’s Front Burner looks at some of the more general issues it raises: What constitutes a routine traffic stop? Why does law enforcement regularly run license tags? Why do people of color experience anxiety about being pulled over by law enforcement?

To answer these questions, we drew on the experience and perspectives of two knowledgeable Central Floridians:

Earnest DeLoach Jr., a lawyer and head of DeLoach Law LLC in Orlando.

Scott Ballou, who worked for 32 years for the Seminole County Sheriff ’s Office and who has taught at the Basic Law Enforcement Academy at Seminole State College.