Consultant: Murphy police 2025 traffic-stop data show compliance but searches hit contraband above state average

Eric Fridge, a consultant with Justice Research Consultants, presented Murphy Police Department's 2025 racial-profiling report and told the council the department is "fully compliant" with Texas requirements for policy, training, complaint processes and stop-data collection.

Fridge described the firm's comparative analyses against census benchmarks for city, county and regional populations and highlighted several figures from the audit. He said officers reported knowing a driver's race before the stop in 1.1% of cases (state averages run about 2–4%). Fridge said searches occurred in 4.6% of stops (412 searches) and that contraband was found in 221 of those searches — a 54% hit rate versus a 45% statewide average. "Contraband was discovered in 54% of your searches," he said, and noted that most discoveries involved drugs (79%).

Fridge also summarized stop outcomes by race and ethnicity and arrest reasons: verbal warnings and citation rates were presented as column percentages (for example, he cited roughly 69% of white motorists receiving verbal warnings and 24% receiving citations), and he said arrests often involved outstanding warrants (53% of arrests) or penal-code violations (about 35%). On complaints, Fridge stated, "You did not receive any complaints in 2025 alleging that a peace officer employed by the agency engaged in racial profiling." He invited council questions and clarified that contraband discovery led to arrest about 22% of the time.

A council member raised a procedural question about whether field identification of suspected marijuana versus hemp could affect outcomes; Fridge said some agencies have moved away from presumptive field testing and deferred specific departmental practices to the police chief.