Of those 217 homicides, more than half of those who died at the hands of San Diego area law enforcement — 114 people — over the last two decades were Black or Latino.
Death at the hands of law enforcement has come under renewed scrutiny in the weeks since a Minneapolis police officer spent eights minutes, 46 seconds with his knee pressed down on George Floyd’s neck as Floyd lay on the ground. The officer was White, Floyd was Black. Since late May, people have taken to the streets across the country to protest police bias and racial injustice, and to demand reforms.
The demonstrations shine a spotlight on long-running tensions between law enforcement and communities of color, even in San Diego County, where residents say they are over-policed.
Police say race is not a factor in the split-second decisions to use force, but rather they consider the totality of circumstances.