DETROIT, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – It looks like Ann Arbor and East Lansing have decided the real problem facing their residents isn’t crime – it’s police contact and racial profiling. So in the name of reducing racial profiling and what they consider to be unnecessary interactions, both cities have rolled out minor stops policies, limiting police authority to pull drivers over for low-level violations like tinted windows, license plate issues, or broken lights.
The theory? Fewer stops mean fewer bad encounters. The problem? Traffic stops have long been one of the most common ways police intercept stolen cars, illegal weapons, drugs, and wanted suspects. Without them, law enforcement loses a critical early-intervention tool – one that often prevents more serious crimes down the road and keeps dangerous individuals from slipping through the cracks until something far worse happens.
Detroit eyes the same roadmap.
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Now Detroit is flirting with the same idea of a minor stops policy, according to a report in the Detroit Free Press. After a series of police shootings that began with minor traffic violations, members of Detroit’s police oversight board are now exploring eliminating minor stops altogether.
Their inspiration comes straight from Ann Arbor, East Lansing, and other jurisdictions. Ann Arbor Council member Cynthia Harrison says about their driving equality ordinance, “Police use of force is the sixth leading cause of death for young Black men (ages 25-29)…we know what can happen.” She gets her information from a 2019 University of Michigan, Rutgers University and Washington University study.
Co-author Michael Esposito said in the study, “This study shows us that police killings are deeply systematic, with race, gender and age patterning this excess cause of death.”
According to supporters, restricting stops could rebuild trust and reduce disparities. Critics argue it also reduces proactive policing – especially in neighborhoods that already struggle with violent crime.
Selective enforcement, selective safety.
Traffic stops are often how police find people who shouldn’t be on the road – or out on the street at all. Critics of the minor stops policies say removing that tool doesn’t magically remove crime; it just removes one of the few legal, routine ways officers can intervene before things escalate.
Meanwhile, residents are left wondering whether the priority is protecting people – or protecting politicians and criminals.
