A study - Alliance for a Just Society

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TO PROTECT AND SERVE?{UNEQUAL TREATMENT IN THE}BILLINGS POLICE DEPARTMENTIntroductionin two billings neighborhoods, residents livevery different lives. In the Heights, higher-incomeresidents live in big houses, on wide, clean,quiet streets. Residents of the Heights feel protectedby their police department, secure in thebelief that the officers are there to serve andprotect them. On the other side of the railroadtracks, lower-income residents of the Southsidehave no such assurances. Their neighborhood isrundown and neglected by the city. To make mattersworse, they cannot rest easy in the knowledgethat Billings police officers will protectthem from the crime in their neighborhoods orviolence in their homes. Instead, Southside residentsfear the police officers themselves.In recent years, the Billings Police Departmentand its leadership have been in the news with reportsof accusations of police brutality and misconduct.A study conducted by Montana People’sAction (mpa) reveals deeper problems within thepolice department that lead to distrust and fearamong residents of certain parts of the city. Thestudy has found that in the Southside neighborhood,the Police Department is known for racialprofiling and discrimination, gender discrimination,mistreatment of domestic violence victims,and demeaning treatment of low-incomeresidents. Surveys comparing the sentimentsof residents of the Heights and residents ofthe Southside uncover two sides of the BillingsPolice Department – one side that servesand protects the wealthier white residents ofthe city, another that ignores or abuses theirpoorer neighbors and people of color.Policing practices reflect the values of a community.While the city pours millions of dollarsinto revitalizing the downtown area, itignores the Southside neighborhood. Witha new administration, the Billings Police Departmenthas an opportunity to redesign theDepartment’s procedures, policies, and trainingpractices to reflect the values of a city thatshould not be divided by income or race. TheDepartment can, with these reforms, trulyserve and protect the whole community.1.
METHODOLOGYmpa developed a six question survey. The surveyform follows in Appendix A. mpa staff developedthe questions, with technical support from theNorthwest Federation of Community Organizations.The survey was tested on 20 people to ensurethat the questions were clearly worded. mpastaff trained members to administer the survey,with a training session that explained the surveyingprocedure and required participants to roleplay administering the survey. mpa staff observedeach member’s first surveys to ensure that eachsurvey administrator was following the sameprocedure.mpa staff and 5 mpa members surveyed 80 peoplein the Heights’ neighborhood, and 80 people inthe Southside neighborhood. Survey respondentswere chosen at random. mpa staff andmembers went door-to-door in the two neighborhoods,during the afternoons and eveningswhen more people would be at home. In theSouthside, mpa staff and members also invitedpeople to take the survey at random at two otherlocations: the Family Services Center and theAmerican Heritage Indian Day fair atSouth Park.In 2004, the police released a community surveythat showed that 51% of the people surveyedbelieved that Billings police officers treated allresidents fairly. mpa members suspected thatthe 49% of residents who did not believe thatthe police treat all residents fairly were low-incomeresidents and people of color. The goal ofthis survey was to test that hypothesis by comparingthe responses of people who lived in alow-income neighborhood with a significantpopulation of people of color with the responsesof people who lived in a predominantly whitehigher-income neighborhood. The questionswere designed to ascertain whether residents ofthe two neighborhoods had different opinionsabout the attitudes of Billings police officers anddifferent experiences with those officers.detail. These stories were written up in narrativeform as they were told to mpa staff and areincluded in this report.FINDINGSmontana people’s action surveyed residents ofBillings about their experiences with the PoliceDepartment and their perceptions of thedepartment. The result was two very differentpictures of the Department. Residents of thecity’s poorer Southside neighborhood describea racially discriminatory police force that failsto respond to residents’ requests for help andcomplaints about police behavior. Residents ofthe wealthier Heights neighborhood do not reportthese problems, and are more concernedthat the force needs more resources and morestable leadership. mpa surveyed 80 residents inthe Heights neighborhood, and 80 residents inthe Southside. As the charts show, while a majority(65 percent) of Southside residents reportedthat they had felt disrespected, ignored,or discriminated against by the Billings PoliceDepartment, a larger portion of Heights residents(76 percent) had never had that experience.And while almost three-quarters (71 percent)of Heights residents believed that BillingsPolice Officers treat all citizens fairly with regardto race, sex, and social status, fewer thanone in five (19 percent) of Southside residentsbelieved it.FINDING: DIFFERENT COMMUNITIES REPORT VERY DIFFERENTEXPERIENCES WITH THE BILLINGS POLICE DEPARTMENT.The survey included two questions that askedresidents to rank the Department, three questionswith yes or no answers, and three openendedquestions. The responses to the rankingquestions and the yes or no questions were compiledusing the online tool Survey Monkey. Theshort answers that people provided to the openendedquestions were grouped into categories ofresponses and quantified.Respondents were also asked if they had a storythat they would like to tell about an experiencewith the Billings Police Department. Four respondentsagreed to tell their stories in greater2.
Page 1: TOPROTECTANDSERVE?{UNEQUAL TREATMEN
Page 5 and 6: FINDING: SOUTHSIDE RESIDENTS ARE MO
Page 8 and 9: 7.FINDING: BILLINGS POLICE DEPARTME
Page 10 and 11: 9.RECOMMENDATIONSRECOMMENDATION: IM
Page 12: REQUIRE EVERY OFFICER TO PARTICIPAT
Page 15 and 16: END NOTESi City of Billings, MT. Ad
Page 17 and 18: HARASSMENT ANDDISCRIMINATIONModel P
Page 19 and 20: crimination.a. OPS shall immediatel

A study - Alliance for a Just Society

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