Black people 17 times more likely to be stopped and searched by police, figures reveal

The data was published on police.uk from 43 forces across the country and shows a black person is more likely to be stopped and searched in the county than in any other part of the UK.

From December, 2014 and April, 2015, 2,912 stop and searches were carried out, 200 of them on black people.

In the latest population census in 2011, there was a recorded population of 3,200 black people and 714,600 white people, meaning it’s 17.5 times more likely a black person would be searched in the county than a white person.

Dorset Police defended the figures and said a large number of holidaymakers and a crackdown on drug gangs coming into the area contributed to the figures.

A police spokesman for Dorset Police said: “Dorset Police, like all forces throughout England and Wales, makes use of legal powers to reduce and detect crime and officers are expected to adhere to high standards of fairness and respect while carrying out their duties.

“Stops are often informed by intelligence or calls from the public and officers apply a test of reasonable suspicion as part of the process.

“The force works hard to ensure that stop and search powers are always used appropriately and in accordance with national guidelines. We are aware of the concern that surrounds perceived disproportionality and the latest figures raise important questions.

“Of course, we are working hard to rebalance these figures and better understand this complex area of policing.

“It is worth noting the figures make use of 2011 census data. The census records the resident population and does not capture the amount of people who visit Dorset – including many holidaymakers – and people who temporarily live in the county for a period of time.

“It is also important to understand that Dorset Police is actively targeting a number of criminal gangs, in Dorset; some of these gangs include members of the black community who are not residents of the county and do not feature in the census data for Dorset.

“Nearly 72 per cent of all searches were drug-related, 12.36 per cent of the searches resulted in an arrest, which is higher than the 10 per cent regarded nationally as an expected outcome ratio.”

Adnan Chaudry, chief officer of the Dorset Race Equality Commission, said the figures were worrying.

He said: “In Dorset, we are concerned about stop and search in terms of the disproportionality between black and white people, which is about 13 to one. We are working with Dorset Police through a stop and search scrutiny panel to address these issues.”