“A ‘Driving While Black’ smartphone application is set for release this month, but its developers say motorists should be careful when they use it,” Steven Dubois reports for The Associated Press.
“‘Do not reach for your phone when you are talking to police,’ stressed attorney Melvin Oden-Orr, who created the app with another Portland lawyer and a software developer,” Dubois reports. “Avoiding any move that could make officers think you’re reaching for a gun is just one of the tips ‘Driving While Black’ offers. And despite its attention-grabbing name, the common-sense advice it offers applies to motorists of all races.”
“The app describes how people can assert their civil rights with officers, enables drivers to alert friends and family with a push of a button that they’ve been pulled over, and includes a recording function to document the interaction,” Dubois reports. “The term ‘driving while black’ reflects widespread frustration among African-Americans that they are more likely to get pulled over than white people — a reality confirmed in a Justice Department report last year that also found black and Hispanic drivers are more likely to be ticketed and searched than whites. The key to surviving a traffic stop, Hyland and Oden-Orr say, is to remain calm, keep your hands on the wheel, be respectful and make no false moves.”
Read more in the full article here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Lynn Weiler” for the heads up.]