The commissioner of the Pennsylvania State Police said Tuesday that his department began collecting data during traffic stops at the beginning of the year as part of a program to identify any racial or ethnic disparities and recommend remedies if they do exist.

 

“Troopers take an oath to enforce the law ‘without any consideration of class, color, creed or condition,” and this data collection effort is one way to show the public we are upholding that oath,” Col. Robert Evanchick said in a statement.

 

“Regular and ongoing analysis by a neutral third party is a critical part of this program that emphasizes our department’s commitment to transparency and continuous improvement,” he said.

 

Evanchick said State Police will collect data for 30 fields, including driver and passenger ages, gender, race and ethnicity, as well the length of the stop, any searches and search results.

 

Data will be analyzed by University of Cincinnati researchers to determine patterns of racial or ethnic disparity any recommendations for changes to State Police policies or training, Evanchick said.

 

A final statistical analysis report will be released in April 2022, police said.