City to end 'Saggy pants' law that mostly affects black men

[left-of-center2012]

The city of Shreveport, Louisiana, has moved to abolish a 2007 ordinance banning people from wearing pants below their waistline.

The Shreveport Times reports the City Council voted 6-1 Tuesday to abolish the law. Police data show it resulted in the arrests of a total of 699 black men and 12 white men.

The law has been questioned since 31-year-old Anthony Childs died in February after an officer tried to stop him for sagging pants. Police say Officer Traveion Brooks chased and shot Childs three times.

A coroner’s report says Childs was ultimately killed by a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

The ordinance said arrests and searches couldn’t solely be based on violating the ordinance. Police Chief Ben Raymond says it’s unclear if anybody was arrested for the violation alone.

https://www.apnews.com/9915696a8f3643fe832d3204026b9422

Caddo coroner: Man involved in police shooting committed suicide

Officer Treveion Brooks ... attempted to detain Childs, who ran, and when confronted by the officer, produced a handgun.
During this confrontation, Dr. Todd Thoma says Childs shot himself in the chest.
He said a total of nine shots were fired.

https://www.ktbs.com/news/caddo-coroner-man-involved-in-police-shooting-committed-suicide/article_3d8e28a6-4b48-11e9-84cd-7fab88f6cea2.html

[tulipsandroses]

1. That is good news

I'm not a fan of seeing people's butt cracks or their draws. But these laws unfairly target minorities. Whenever I hear of them being enforced,
I don't think I've heard of the white young girl wearing low hip jeans with her g string showing being arrested, black women wear those jeans too I might add. Those jeans have been in fashion for several years, so if the law about wearing pants below the waist is being applied fairly, arrests should be going up for young white women wearing these jeans no?

The govt has no business policing people's choice of clothing and arresting them for their fashion choices. We would be outraged as a nation if we heard of a white young girl being shot to death as a result of running away for not wanting to be arrested for wearing her low rise jeans.!!!

[Aristus]

2. They can keep the law if they include white-girl whale-tails and white-guy wife-beaters.

A little 'equal justice under the law' for once...

[gratuitous]

3. Only one recorded death needed to repeal this stupid law?

Most localities require a lot more to overturn the stupidity of a prior administration. Good on Shreveport that one citizen's unnecessary death was enough to do something.