"The Auburn University Montgomery (AUM) Center for Government (CGOV), in cooperation with the University’s Department of Justice and Public Safety, entered into an agreement with the Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS) to conduct a study on bias-based policing in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The purpose of the study was to develop a better understanding of police bias, as it might exist in the Virginia police community, and provide recommendations that would best address the overall problem of bias-based policing. The study was designed to meet four major goals: (1) review current literature; (2) facilitate focus group meetings; (3) recommend training for law enforcement; and (4) recommend policy development. For the purpose of this study, researchers utilized the following broad-based definition of biasbased policing: bias-based policing includes practices by individual officers, supervisors, managerial practices, and departmental programs, both intentional and non-intentional that incorporate prejudicial judgments based on sex, race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, economic status, religious beliefs, or age that are inappropriately applied." (Bias-Based Policing: A Study for the Commonwealth of Virginia, page vii)

View the Report (.pdf, 208 pages).

• Appendix A - Virginia Police Public Contact Survey (.pdf, 10 pages)
• Appendix B - Officer Questionnaire, Urban Departments (.pdf, 3 pages)
• Appendix C - Officer Questionnaire, Rural Departments (.pdf, 3 pages)
• Appendix D - Letter to Chiefs, Urban Departments (.pdf, 3 pages)
• Appendix E - Letter to Chiefs, Rural Departments (.pdf, 3 pages)
• Appendix F - Map of Zones (.pdf, 2 pages)
• Appendix G - Officer Response Rate by Zone and Race (.pdf, 13 pages)
• Appendix H - Officer Response Rate by Zone and Rank (.pdf, 13 pages)
• Appendix I - Citizen Response Rate by Zone and Race (.pdf, 29 pages)