Book Review: Gumbhir, V. K. (2007). But Is It Racial Profiling? Policing, Pretext Stops, and the Color of Suspicion. New York: LFB Scholarly, 278 pp

• Author: Brian L. Withrow
• Published date: 01 June 2009
• Date: 01 June 2009
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1177/0734016809332181
• Subject Matter: Articles

272 Criminal Justice Review

Herbert raises important points concerning the nature of community and especially con-

cerning the viability of community in sustaining political action. His overarching theme

concerning the dangers of pushing government down to the community level is especially

pertinent and timely. It presents a challenge to contemporary policing thinking. His qualita-

tive approach, familiar from his work with the Los Angeles Police Department, is engag-

ingly presented. Herbert’s goal in writing the book was to present an explication of the

normative processes of community and policing. To this end, he was successful.

Lacking in Herbert’s narrative was an adequate discussion of what COP is and a discus-

sion of evidenced-based research. There are disparate definitions of COP used within

criminal justice research and practice. On page 4, Herbert acknowledges this disparity and

offers some descriptions of what COP may look like in action. However, he does not seem

to go far enough in developing explicitly or fully a working definition of COP. This could

have affected his ultimate conclusion that COP cannot succeed and truly merited its own

chapter. Also, although Herbert goes at length to justify ignoring the so-called what works

literature, his argument (presented on page 11) seems shaky and unconvincing. Taking a

qualitative approach does not disqualify the use of quantitative methods. Indeed, given the

case study nature of his work, Herbert would have been well served with a triangulated

methodological approach. Including such discussions and data would have enriched an

already illuminating work.

And Herbert’s book is indeed that: illuminating and refreshing. His normative approach,

concomitant with empiricism, is a welcome addition to the policing and community literature.

This book would serve well anyone interested in community, urban, and policing studies, and

especially graduate level policing courses focusing on COP or problem-oriented policing.

Jonathon A. Cooper

Arizona State University

Gumbhir, V. K. (2007). But Is It Racial Profiling? Policing, Pretext Stops, and the Color of

Suspicion. New York: LFB Scholarly, 278 pp.

DOI: 10.1177/0734016809332181

Generally speaking, there are two kinds of racial profiling books. Social commentary

books play a role in the racial profiling controversy by raising general public awareness.

Unfortunately, they offer little insight into the pursuit of knowledge. The scholarly books

devoted to theory building, improving analytical strategy, and expanding the work of previ-

ous researchers are an invaluable tool for advancing the racial profiling debate. Vikas

K. Gumbhir’s But is it Racial Profiling? Policing, Pretext Stops, and the Color of Suspicion

fits well into the second category.

Gumbhir proposes “a framework for understanding and interpreting racial/ethnic dis-

parities in law enforcement practices, specifically differences that are captured in vehicle

stop data” (p. 42). He attempts to synthesize the competing definitions of racial profiling

and in doing so offers a substantially expanded description of the practice. The focus, he

argues, should be on understanding officer decision making, particularly during pretextual