St. Louis County police forces often don't reflect communities

About 67 percent of Ferguson’s residents are African-American, but only 7 percent of the city’s commissioned police officers are black.
That lopsided representation, brought to light after a black teen was killed by a white police officer two weeks ago, has city leaders pledging to try harder to improve race relations.

The disparity is common among communities in St. Louis County with significant black populations. Many police departments do not reflect the communities they serve.

No known agency tracks the racial makeup of police departments, so the Post-Dispatch contacted 36 St. Louis County police departments in cities where at least 10 percent of the population is African-American. In 30 of the 31 communities that responded, the percentage of black residents is higher than the proportion of black officers.

http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/metro/st-louis-county-police-forces-often-don-t-reflect-communities/article_a29dc3e4-91bb-5cf5-9b30-9ebb95c5e1c6.html