Racial Bias in Fatal Police Shootings: Excess Death Estimates

Blacks constitute 12.3 percent of the US population but account for 22.4 percent of fatalities in police shootings. This is usually taken as prima facie evidence of a racial bias in police shootings. The perception is reinforced by highly publicized incidents of police brutality against blacks. The case, however, is not quite so obvious. It is well-unde…