Crime & Safety

The Blunt Truth: Blacks More Often Arrested in Suffolk for Carrying Pot, Study Finds

But American Civil Liberties Union report claims county's disparity is not among the highest in the state.

This story was posted by Jason Molinet. It was written by Henry Powderly.

Police were four times more likely to arrest blacks for marijuana possession in 2010 in Suffolk County, a new study by the American Civil Liberties Union showed, though the region was in no way the highest in the state when it comes to racial disparities in pot arrests.

For every 100,000 people in the county, Suffolk Police in 2010 arrested 1,055 blacks on marijuana charges, 4.2 times the number of whites arrested for similar offenses and topping the the national average of 3.73. In Nassau, blacks are 3.57 times more likely to be arrested. The study looked at non-felony drug charges such as marijuana possession.

The amount may seem more shocking in Suffolk, where blacks only make up 7 percent of Suffolk's population, according the the U.S. Census Bureau's 2010 Census.

The disparities were far worse in New York county – Manhattan – where blacks were 9.4 times more likely to be nabbed on pot charges, and Kings County – Brooklyn – where blacks were 9.7 percent more likely, the highest disparity in the state.

"The Suffolk County Police Department does not arrest any person based on race, ethnicity or religion," a department spokesperson told Patch in an email. "The Department focuses its law enforcement efforts in communities that experience increased criminal behavior. These communities tend to have a higher minority population which results in a higher number of minority suspects but also minority victims."

But the  ACLU study claims marijuana use is nearly equal among blacks and whites in the nation.

Find out what's happening in Huntingtonwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

"Marijuana use is roughly equal among Blacks and whites," the ACLU study concluded. "In 2010, 14 percent of blacks and 12 percent of whites reported using marijuana in the past year; in 2001, the figure was 10 percent of whites and 9 percent of blacks. In every year from 2001 to 2010, more whites than blacks between the ages of 18 and 25 reported using marijuana in the previous year."

Statewide, blacks are 4.5 times more likely to be arrested on pot charges.

Find out what's happening in Huntingtonwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

“In all corners of New York State, police are targeting people of color for marijuana possession arrests,” NYCLU Executive Director Donna Lieberman said in a statement. “Arresting and jailing thousands of people for possessing small amounts of marijuana does not make safer streets. It only needlessly disrupts people’s lives and fosters distrust between the police and the communities they are sworn to serve.”

From 2001 to 2010, there were 8 million marijuana arrests in the United States, or one pot arrest every 37 seconds, the ALCU study claimed, costing $3.6 billion nationally. In 2010, New York state spent $678 million enforcing marijuana laws.

While the study focuses on smaller possession arrests, Suffolk County has had its share of major marijuana busts. In October, police broke apart a major drug ring run by a Manhattan businessman that pumped marijuana and other drugs into the county. In 2007, the county broke apart another drug ring that was growing the drug hydroponically in warehouses in the county. 


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

To request removal of your name from an arrest report, submit these required items to arrestreports@patch.com.