The 2008 National Survey of Latinos asked Hispanic adults about their views of the police and courts in their communities, their perceptions of crime and any interaction they or their immediate family members have had with the criminal justice system.
In recent decades, Hispanics’ exposure to all parts of the criminal justice system has risen even faster than their rising share of the U.S. adult population. In state, federal and local prisons and jails, the share of inmates who were Hispanic increased from 16% in 2000 to 20% in 2008 (West and Sabol, 2009).
Just under half (46%) of Hispanics say they have confidence that police officers will not use excessive force on suspects, compared with 73% of whites and 38% of blacks. Similarly, just under half of Hispanics say they are confident that police officers will treat Hispanics fairly (45%) and that courts will treat Hispanics fairly (49%).
Overall, more than half (56%) of Latinos say they or an immediate family member had contact with the criminal justice system in the previous five years. Contact includes reporting a crime to the police, serving on a jury, being arrested, being on probation or parole, or serving time in jail or prison.
Overall, according to the Pew Center on the States, some 4% of adult Hispanics in 2007 were either in prison or jail or on probation or parole. This is larger than the share of whites (2%) who were under some form of corrections control in 2007 and smaller than the share of blacks (9%).
The 2008 National Survey of Latinos asked Hispanic adults about their views of the police and courts in their communities, their perceptions of crime and any interaction they or their immediate family members have had with the criminal justice system. The survey was conducted from June 9 through July 13, 2008, among a randomly selected, nationally representative sample of 2,015 Hispanic adults. The survey was conducted in both English and Spanish. The margin of error for the full sample is plus or minus 2.8 percentage points at the 95% confidence level.
Just under half (46%) of Hispanics say they have confidence that police officers will not use excessive force on suspects, compared with 73% of whites and 38% of blacks. Similarly, just under half of Hispanics say they are confident that police officers will treat Hispanics fairly (45%) and that courts will treat Hispanics fairly (49%). ...
adult population. In state, federal and local prisons and jails, the share of inmates who were Hispanic increased from 16% in 2000 to 20% in 2008 (West and Sabol, 2009).
At a time when Latinos are interacting more than ever with police, courts and prisons, their confidence in the U.S. criminal justice system is closer to the low levels expressed by blacks than to the high levels expressed by whites, according to a pair of nationwide surveys by the Pew Research Center. 1
More than three-quarters (78%) of Hispanics say that if they were a victim of a violent crime, they would definitely report that crime to the police. Overall, more than half (56%) of Latinos say they or an immediate family member had contact with the criminal justice system in the previous five years. Contact includes reporting a crime ...