Contacts Between Police and the Public: Demographics

"In 2020, males (21%) were more likely than females (20%) to have contact with police in the past 12 months (table 1). While males (11%) were more likely than females (9%) to have police-initiated contact, females (12%) were more likely than males (11%) to initiate contact with police. There was no significant difference between the percentages of males and females who had police contact related to a traffic accident.

"Across race and Hispanic origin, white persons (22%) were more likely than black (18%), Hispanic (17%), or Asian (16%) persons, but less likely than persons of another race (28%), to have contact with police in 2020. White persons (3.0%) were less likely than black persons (3.6%) but more likely than Hispanic persons (2.5%) to have police contact related to a traffic accident.

"Persons ages 18 to 24 were the most likely age group to have police-initiated contact (17%) and police contact related to a traffic accident (5%) in 2020. Persons ages 18 to 24 (10%) were more likely to initiate police contact than those ages 16 to 17 (4%). They were less likely than those ages 25 to 44 (13%) or 45 to 64 (12%) to initiate police contact."

Source

Susannah N. Tapp, PhD, and Elizabeth J. Davis. Contacts Between Police and the Public, 2020. NCJ304527 US Dept. of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics. November 2022.