by Steve Timmer
Sep 24, 2025, 4:00 PM
Yohuru Williams wins a Spotty ™
‘Moriarty got it right: Pretext stops are biased and ineffective‘
For a commentary affirming Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty’s new policy of eliminating pretext traffic stops, Professor Yohuru Williams wins a Spotty™. (That’s a gift link to the Star Tribune.) I was going to write a story about this, but Williams did it and did it better than I would have. Please read it.
Mary Moriarty seems committed to leaving her progressive mark on the County Attorney’s Office. Here are a few grafs from Williams’ piece:
Reports from both the U.S. Department of Justice and Minnesota Department of Human Rights have made it crystal-clear: Traffic enforcement in Minneapolis is permeated by racial bias. Compared with white drivers, Black drivers were 6.5 times more likely to be stopped for minor infractions, 1.5 times more likely to receive a citation, 12.8 times more likely to have their vehicles searched and 9 times more likely to suffer violence at the hands of police.
Pretext stops are not just biased, they’re ineffective. The DOJ found that only 0.3% of Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) traffic stops resulted in the recovery of weapons. And the racial double standard is unmistakable: Police disproportionately pull over Black motorists, yet they’re more likely to recover contraband from vehicles operated by white drivers.
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We already know that moving resources to combating dangerous driving pays significant dividends. After Ramsey County limited enforcement of minor traffic offenses, stops fell by 86%, with a 66% drop in the number of stops of Black drivers. These changes came at no cost to public safety. The number of firearms confiscated remained stable.
Remember, a Spotty™ is awarded for an op-ed or letter to the editor I wish I had written myself.
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