FERNDALE, Mich. – Ferndale Police Department has responded to claims of racial profiling during traffic stops on 8 Mile Road, which borders Ferndale and Detroit.
The Council on American Islamic Relations’ Michigan chapter, also known as CAIR Michigan, started studying Ferndale’s practices in 2021 when a Muslim woman was required to remove her hijab during the booking process.
FPD has since changed its booking policies.
The woman was detained after a traffic stop in the eastbound lanes of 8 Mile Road. CAIR Michigan believes it is technically on the Detroit side of the road.
CAIR Michigan filed a federal lawsuit on the woman’s behalf, and a settlement was reached in May 2022.
The organization also requested a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) for Ferndale police’s traffic stop on 8 Mile Road from January 2021 to October 2021.
“There is a disproportionate number of African Americans who are stopped by the Ferndale Police Department given citations and as well as arrests,” said CAIR Michigan Executive Director Dawud Walid.
That is how he described the conclusion of their study, Lifting the Veil of Racial Profiling in Ferndale, during a press conference Thursday (Aug. 17).
Lifting the Veil on Racial Profiling in Ferndale
CAIR Michigan Staff Attorney Amy Doukoure also spoke about tickets and arrests due to the traffic stops during the press conference.
“Almost 15% of tickets issued by the city of Ferndale are issued inside the city of Detroit,” said Doukoure. “What is more interesting, to say the least, is 26.7% of all arrests made by Ferndale Police Department are made inside the city of Detroit.”
Ferndale police Chief Dennis Emmi said as of Thursday afternoon, he did not have a chance to analyze the entire report but that there are misconceptions about where Ferndale ends and Detroit starts.
“Our border, by survey, actually goes all the way to the last lane of the south curb, so much of the eastbound road is in the city boundaries of the city of Ferndale,” said Emmi.
Emmi also refuted any claims of racial bias in the department.
CAIR Michigan sent the report to the Department of Justice and the city of Detroit to review.
“We are asking the Department of Justice to launch a thorough review and investigation of policing in the city of Ferndale as it relates to what we believe is racial profiling,” Walid said.
The organization is also requesting the city of Ferndale have an independent firm investigate the policy practices of the traffic stops.
“We’re an open book, and there’s nothing to hide,” Emmi said. Here we are as a city of Ferndale and the Ferndale Police Department. We are committed to transparency, accountability, and oversight.”