The Detroit Free Press: Racial disparity in nonviolent gun arrests leads advocates to call for dropping charges
The news article could alternatively be called:
Wayne County Clerk Doesn't Do It's Job, Minorities Hardest Hit
The facts are that Detroit is over 80% Black, so it's not surprising that 97% of those charged are indeed mainly Blacks that will get hit for carrying concealed without a permit.
Add the fact that there's a vibrant criminal class that happens to be disproportionately Black in Detroit that is knowingly flouting the law and carrying illegally to commit crimes and the percentages are not surprising, nor explainable by simply pulling the race card.
Understand, the Prosecutor in Detroit is Black, the vast majority of the assistant prosecutors are Black, The Wayne County Sheriff is Black, and the Detroit Police Chief is Black. The majority of the Detroit government is Black.
Blaming this on race and Playing the race card against them is a fool's errand.
Of course, had Wayne County actually processed CPL applications in any timely fashion it would have alleviated a lot of these charges upon the otherwise law-abiding as the law-abiding people would have their CPLs. Some people I know have been charged in Detroit due to expired CPLs, because again because the Clerk is not doing her job. The Wayne County Clerk continues the delays to this day.
Some of the charges are also unfortunately due to ignorance and people not knowing the law.
Michigan has open carry, and open carry without any permit is lawful. But, having a loaded pistol in a vehicle, even if it is visible, is not open carrying but is essentially considered to be concealed and thus requiring a CPL. People who don't know better, but really should, doth make this mistake a lot.
In short the problem is very real, and a mix of actual criminals getting caught and the innocent swept up with them due to carrying illegally through ignorance, but racism has damn well nothing to do with it.
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