Police Short on Hispanic Officers, AP Finds

An analysis by The Associated Press found that the racial gap between black police officers and the communities where they work has narrowed over the last generation. A much larger disparity, however, is now seen in the low number of Hispanic officers in police departments.

The killing of an unarmed black 18-year-old by an officer in a nearly all-white police department in suburban St. Louis refocused the country on the racial balance between police forces and the communities they protect.

But an analysis by The Associated Press found that the racial gap between black police officers and the communities where they work has narrowed over the last generation, particularly in departments that once were the least diverse.

A much larger disparity, however, is now seen in the low number of Hispanic officers in police departments. In Waco, Texas, for example, the community is more than 30 percent Hispanic, but the police department of 231 full-time sworn officers has only 27 Hispanics.

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