Report: Duluth Police releases 2022 traffic stop data

Duluth is learning more about all the traffic and subject stops that the Police Department conducted throughout the last year, with DPD releasing their 2022 Stop Data Report.

Stop Data Reporting is information entered by officers during a traffic stop, subject stop, or suspicious activity. Officers are required to complete a stop data form, with multiple mandatory fields. The subject’s race and gender are two fields to be filled out, with Duluth Police Chief Mike Ceynowa emphasizing that “this information comes from the officer’s perceived perception of the subject’s race and gender. Race and gender information during a stop is not associated to an individual’s police department record unless they are arrested, a victim, or a suspect in a crime.”

The report includes demographic breakdowns of the 5,944 stop data entries collected in 2022. 39% of those stops involved female subjects, and 99.6% were self-initiated. 4,686 Warnings and 808 Citations were issued, 207 individuals were arrested, and 243 stops required no action.

The full Stop Data Report can be found here. DPD also shared a document including all Stop Data Entries, which can be found here.

“As a police department, it is important for us to be transparent with our community in order to build trust. This report is one piece of information that helps to reinforce our commitment to that work,” said Chief Mike Ceynowa. “Traffic and subject stops are an integral part of keeping our community safe and how these stops are conducted matter to those who live, work, and visit our city.”

Stop data will be posted on the Duluth Police Department’s website on a quarterly basis. Data from this report, along with recommendations from the Racial Bias Audit, will be utilized to help the Duluth Police Department to continue to improve practices and services to the community.