Front Page  »  

Cal Poly police accused of racial profiling

November 16, 2019

By CCT STAFF

The Cal Poly San Luis Obispo Chapter of the California Faculty Association (CFA) has accused campus police of racial profiling, according to a letter the CFA sent members on Thursday. [Cal Coast Times]

A faculty member of color reported an act of racial profiling to the CFA based on an alleged incident that occurred earlier this quarter. A campus police officer allegedly pulled over the faculty member, handcuffed the professor and searched their vehicle without providing a reason for the stop or the search.

“The treatment that this faculty member was subjected to was disturbing and humiliating and the faculty member’s dignity was severely compromised,” according to the CFA. “The faculty member continues to fear being randomly stopped again by campus police.”

Because of a lack of trust in campus administration and fear of retaliation, the faculty member reported the incident to the CFA and not school officials, according to the CFA.

In response, Cal Poly President Jeffrey Armstrong said the university had not previously been aware of the allegation, and has since opened an investigation.

“If any member of our campus is harmed, we want and need to know about it,” Armstrong said in a letter to the campus community. “We will do all that we can to support them, bring about justice, and ensure their ongoing safety, wellbeing and comfort. We can only do this if incidents are reported, which allows us to launch an investigation, hold accountable those who are responsible, and take corrective action to help ensure similar incidents don’t happen again.”


Loading...
Related:


23 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments

This is troubling. The Tribune story said the union is calling for others with similar stories to come forward.

If several others do, maybe then the story would be more compelling as to whether the CPPD is guilty of profiling.

Or that this was a unique incident.

Traffic cops can be real a-holes to anybody they encounter.


1

This piece has very little information in it other than to report an accusation. I would like to see fewer stories that seem only to report allegations or suspicions. The responses are also troubling because of so much speculation.


1

https://transparentcalifornia.com/

The information at the above link ought to motivate the low information citizenry to engage, on one level or another.


1

SLO police profile innocent white man when police chief’s gun is taken from a bathroom: CCN commenters LIVID at corrupt police.


Cal Poly police profile innocent black professor on campus: CCN commenters ANGRY at victim.


0

Where does it say the person is black? Can we wait for a bit more information drawing a conclusion. IMO the straw man argument you make is not comparable. In the gun case it appears to be a misdirection by the police.

If the cops did profile they should be let go – but as recent stories suggest they won’t.


8

This article doesn’t tell me much. What are they profiling against? Professors, women, men, Hispanics, African Americans?

One bad or presumed bad traffic stop is not profiling.


I bet 80% of the arrests are white drunk kids. They have a case for profiling.


16

Yea, you’re probably right that 80% of the arrests are drunk white kids, especially considering white kids make up almost 55% of the student body it would only stand to reason.

When you have a person pulled over for no apparent reason, handcuffed for no apparent reason, detained for no apparent reason and his vehicle searched for no apparent reason and he’s a person of color, what other conclusion would you consider?

Yea, you should profile drunk white kids, as they’re drunk in public, which is against the law. Jeeeez! You can do better than that, right? Probably not…


1

I’m sure this is nothing more than a bunch of liberal propaganda.


11

Labels are unhelpful and reveal more of those who use them, than those who are labeled.


-1

….labels are also an intellectually lazy attempt to make a point.


They might as well just make grunting sounds. It would be just as effective as an argument.


2

I will hold off on any kind of an opinion until we hear the whole story, especially the police officer’s side. Was there a dash cam or body cam? This might shed some facts to the claim. I hope all will hold their judgement until the whole truth is shared not just the professor’s claim. I would be interested in hearing more about the professor and his background as well.


18

This will come out as a complete fabrication by the faculty member seeking attention.


21

And you have first hand knowledge and tangible evidence to back up your claim? If so, will you provide that proof to CCN first?


-11

It is called my opinion and prediction. Maybe I am wrong. Pretty difficult to and up in handcuffs and having your car searched for just a normal traffic stop there certainly were other circumstances involved if it happened at all.


2

Then say as much, Sherlock! And then you use “certainly”? Good god, and I thought we only had one cold case Sherlock on this sight. Man, please! And what does “if it happened at all” mean? Are you doubting he or she was even pulled over? Man I wished I had your crystal ball, I’d be a millionaire!


-4

Absolutely. The reality is that it is FAR more likely that this person was detained because the officers suspected a serious issue. As far as the “the faculty member continues to ‘fear being randomly stopped again”, PLEASE, if this faculty member is this soft, I don’t want them teaching my kids anything.


3

I wished I lived on your absolutely world, I really do! But sadly I live in the real world where the only thing that’s absolute is death!

Dallas, TN sometime in the summer of 1987 I was pulled over by a Dallas County Sheriff for the horrendous crime of having California license plates on my van. The deputy was quite frank about his “probable cause” as it seems that all vehicles bearing a Cali’ license plate, especially one being driven by a long haired ‘hippie type”, his words, was suspect of “something”, again his words.

He asked me if I would subject myself to a voluntary search of both my person and my van, I said no. He returned to his car and promptly called for a supervisor who arrived post haste.

At this point in time they finally asked for my drivers license which I promptly produced. After running me and finding nothing the supervisor came over and reached out to give me my license back, and promptly drew his hand back when I reached for it and tossed it into traffic. He advised me it would be better to submit to a voluntary search, again I said no. He made a call and about 30 minutes later another deputy showed up with a search warrant for my person and my van.

They tore the contents of my van up and left it on the side of the road, they stripped me down to my skivvies and tore my clothes up. They found nothing, nada, as there was nothing to be found. After the 3 of them finished they surrounded me and put me on my knees and then handcuffed me. The supervisor reached down and grabbed me underneath my chin tilting my head back as to look directly into my eyes and said “Welcome to Tennessee. You have 30 minutes to pack your shit back in your van and git! If you ain’t gone I’ll tow that piece of shit and dump your shit in the dump!” He started to walk away and then turned back to me and said “And drive that piece of shit without your license? I’ll throw your Yankee ass in jail!” I was fortunate enough to be in a town with some pretty kind citizens and two of them came to my rescue, I won’t go into that part of it.

I was never told what I was pulled over for, I was never placed under arrest or told I was in custody for suspicion of any damn thing, it was just because I had Cali’ license plates and long hair.

There is nothing absolute about dealing with cops, nothing! And folks like you who perpetuate that myth do the whole community harm.


-5

This soft? WTF?!! You’d rather have teacher/professor with a gangster attitude or what? And what would you have done if pulled over? Submit to a search without probable cause? Not raise hell over it if it was done anyway? Now that would be some soft a$$ chit, Bubba!

Get a grip would ya?! This a place for higher education, in America, not some gulag in Siberia…

Amazing, frickin’ amazing….


-5

Your comments are filled with anger and rage at times. Maybe CCN can report the full story with the whole facts so the picture will be a bit more clear to all. Still waiting for the law enforcement side of this issue, As for places for higher education, I would pray that these universities let free speech from all sides, not just the ones they agree with. I’m sure you would agree with that “AmericaTheFree”. Not allowing those to speak, and shouting out those you don’t agree with? Well, talk about gulags.


0

How can you tell my state of mind or how I feel just from typed out words? Why can’t I just be expressing my opinion with a little more literary exuberance than what you’re used to, rather than it being rage and or anger? Your accusation of “rage” and “anger” is meant to marginalize what I’m actually saying, a way of “whispering” me down, to shut me up.

You do what you do and I’ll do what I do, that’s the freedom we both enjoy in this country, right? If not, then we’re both in a gulag…


-1

Because there is no precedent for racial profiling by police?


-15

https://youtu.be/qShz1VZ71nA


0

Political Profiling is a much more real and greater threat.


32