HARTFORD, Conn. — The Connecticut Racial Profiling Prohibition Project, or CTRP3, has completed a multi-step effort to assess inaccuracies with Connecticut State Police (CSP) traffic stop records that skewed the state’s racial profiling database.
CTRP3 released the Connecticut State Police Traffic Stop Data Audit Supplemental Report earlier this month. According to the project, an audit and report became necessary when concerns arose in 2023 after media reports uncovered that a 2018 internal investigation found four state troopers submitted false traffic stop records to CSP’s internal system. The same system supplied data to the state’s racial profiling database.
In response, the CTRP3 Advisory Board authorized a comprehensive audit of CSP records from 2014 to 2021. The audit was published in June and showed that data inaccuracies may have involved more troopers over the years.
After the audit was completed, CSP reviewed systematic issues that may have caused these inaccuracies. An investigation was also launched into records submitted by the troopers and constables that the audit identified.
CTRP3 says the review examined which records represented real traffic stops but were submitted in a form that didn’t meet reliability standards. CSP also identified some troopers and constables whose records couldn’t be reconciled. CTRP3 says CSP shared their findings with the project staff throughout the process.
In the supplemental report, CTRP3 addresses many of the systematic issues identified in the audit and how they contributed to unreliable data being reported to the racial profiling database.
“In collaboration with the CSP, we have worked to resolve these issues and ensure they do not occur,” CTRP3 says.
CTRP3 is confident that most systematic issues have been addressed, which should reduce the chances of similar problems occurring in the future. Those leading the project and familiar with the audit also believe that reliable records have been determined while unreliable ones have been examined using caution.
According to CTRP3, the audit identified more than 25,000 unsubstantiated infraction records submitted to the state’s racial profiling database. A total of 130 troopers with a statistically significant number of unmatched records in at least one year of the audit were found to be of particular concern.
The process then reviewed over 30,000 records submitted by the 130 troopers with the most significant discrepancies in the audit. Badge number errors accounted for 11% of the discrepancies, leading to 26 troopers being removed from consideration. Their data is now considered reliable.
Of the remaining 104 troopers, CTRP3 says 67 troopers were fully reconciled and seven were partially reconciled. However, 30 troopers, including eight of the top 10 flagged in the audit, could not be reconciled. One trooper who was reconciled for a single year was found to have significant discrepancies in other years, confirming the unreliability of their records.
Errors included age discrepancies (30% of errors), badge number errors (32% of errors), stop date errors (4% of records), town tickets (18% of errors) and other minor errors.
According to CTRP3, CSP has made significant progress in addressing the most critical concerns outlined in the June 2023 audit.
“CSP has implemented several corrective actions, including improving training, updating reporting systems and enhancing oversight of stop records,” CTRP3 says. “They have made significant progress in improving the accuracy of the data reported.”
CTRP3 states in the report that it is confident that changes have been made and CSP’s oversight mechanism has addressed most of the correctable problems.
“We do not anticipate similar errors in the data system going forward. All of these efforts will help improve the public’s trust in the data reporting system,” CTRP3 says, concluding its executive summary.
For more information on the Connecticut Racial Profiling Project, and to view its reports, audits and published information, one can click here.
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Dalton Zbierski is a digital content producer and writer at FOX61 News. He can be reached at dzbierski@FOX61.com.
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