Pretext stops can also unjustly funnel people into the criminal justice and immigration enforcement pipeline, Montes-Ponce noted.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat may start as a tinted window issue can easily become something much larger,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
When Montes-Ponce\u2019s team began hosting community events about pretext stops earlier this year, the findings confirmed what residents already knew. \u201cNone of this data surprised them,\u201d he said. \u201cWhat was shocking for them is why hasn\u2019t anything been done?\u201d<\/p>\n
Following the lead of cities like San Francisco and Berkeley that have limited enforcement of non-moving traffic violations, ACLU NorCal\u2019s criminal justice team started mapping the local policy landscape in Sacramento. What they found was a yawning gap: The city had no strict policies limiting pretext stops or Fourth Amendment search and seizures.<\/p>\n
ACLU NorCal then collaborated with district officials, local activists, and the city\u2019s police oversight committee to host in-person events in the districts with the highest rate of pretext stops. The campaign also recently launched an on-the-ground canvassing effort in those communities and has expanded outreach to additional districts to consolidate support for the issue.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a matter of political will,\u201d said Montes-Ponce, who is optimistic the City Council will take up the issue this year. \u201cI think there is a good chance if the community comes out and supports it.\u201d<\/p>\n