When Ann Arbor City Council member Cynthia Harrison began her initiative to stop police from pulling over drivers for low-level traffic stops to address minor infractions, she listened to constituents who raised the issue of being stopped and sometimes searched for things like a broken tail light or expired registration. But for her, it was also personal—as a mother of Black men, she knew the feeling of fear and worry that sinks in for many drivers when they see flashing lights in the rearview mirror.

“It’s like these little cuts and scrapes that happen over time for Black mothers who have kids on the road who are driving,” Harrison said. “When I knew my youngest son was on the road, I was nervous all the time. I was on edge. When he called me, sometimes it was like my heart would stop.”

Reforming Traffic Stops in Washtenaw County

Harrison’s resulting policy to reduce low-level traffic stops, the Driving Equality Ordinance, passed handily in 2023 in the small progressive university town that often welcomes reform. The measure essentially ends low-level traffic stops, prohibiting officers from pulling drivers over for small infractions, allowing them to send drivers a ticket in the mail instead. Now, the policy has also set the stage for a larger debate across Washtenaw County, where Ann Arbor sits. There, candidates in the race for county sheriff have echoed local calls to reform traffic stops, but have diverging visions on policy.

Sheriff Jerry Clayton announced in 2022 that he wouldn’t seek reelection after serving four consecutive terms leading law enforcement in Washtenaw. With no Republicans in the race, voters will choose Clayton’s successor in the Democratic primary on Aug. 6. Clayton never formally limited officers from making stops for equipment and registration issues. But he did previously speak out against the use of traffic stops to search drivers and fish for contraband after prosecutors decided in 2021 to stop charging many cases where drivers are arrested during a non-safety-related traffic stop.

Read the full article about reforming low-level traffic stops by Pascal Sabino at Bolts.