"The new traffic stop policy, implemented by the civilian police commission last year, restricts the use of certain non-moving traffic violations, like hanging an air freshener from a rearview mirror or missing a single tail light, as the primary reason for a stop. The commissioners' reasoning was that those stops disproportionately targeted Black drivers and were used as a pretext to search for criminal activity."
"Soon after the new policy went into effect in 2024, whites surpassed Blacks as the racial group subject to the most searches for the first time since a single quarter of 2021 - indicating more proportional enforcement across races in a city that is more than 50 percent white. Black people make up only about 5 percent of the city's population but historically accounted for up to 40 percent of drivers searched, while whites often made up under 30 percent of those searched."
San Francisco implemented a new traffic stop policy in July 2024 that restricts using certain non-moving violations as primary reasons for stops. The policy targets practices like using air freshener obstructions or a single missing tail light that were identified as disproportionately targeting Black drivers and serving as pretext for searches. After the policy took effect, data showed whites became the group subject to the most searches for the first time since a quarter of 2021, indicating more proportional enforcement in a city over 50 percent white. The police union sued to overturn the policy and a judge dismissed the lawsuit in September 2025. Proponents say the policy reduced over-policing of communities of color while maintaining public safety and call for continued oversight.
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