Since 2016, Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Office deputies have used force against Black individuals at a rate of more than six times their population, according to police data.
While Black people averaged 1.4% of the county population, they made up nearly 9.4% of use-of-force cases reported by Stanislaus SO personnel in the past eight years.
In most years, use-of-force data for other racial or ethnic groups were either closely aligned or fell below their population share. In 2016, white people represented nearly 39% of use-of-force cases while making up just about 36% of the population. Hispanic people made up nearly half of use-of-force incidents but accounted for 55% of the population in 2021.
Black people were consistently over-represented, year after year.
Use of force is defined by the Sheriff’s Office as “the application of physical techniques or tactics, chemical agents, or weapons to another person.”
In 2018, use-of-force incidents involving Black individuals occurred at a rate more than 13 times their representation in the population. It was also the second-lowest year for total use-of-force incidents.