NAACP settles lawsuit with Missouri attorney general over vehicle stops report

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Missouri Attorney General's Office has agreed to resume publishing the "disparity index" with its annual vehicle stops report after reaching a settlement with the state NAACP.

The NAACP sued the attorney general's office in May, alleging the office broke the law by not publishing the index in the yearly reports. The disparity index is a measure of how much drivers of a particular race or ethnicity are stopped compared to their white counterparts.

Nimrod Chapel, president of the Jefferson City NAACP, said Monday that the attorney general's office agreed to start publishing the index again, including adding it to the 2023 and 2024 reports.

The Missouri Attorney General's Office is required by law to publish the vehicle stops report each year by June 1. The office stopped publishing the disparity index in the 2023 report under then-Attorney General Andrew Bailey, saying it was of "limited analytical value."

Chapel said that dealing with new Attorney General Catherine Hanaway, a former state House speaker, is a "breath of fresh air."

"It's important to know that there's integrity in that office, and I believe that to be the case," Chapel said of Hanaway's leadership.

Chapel said the NAACP's lawsuit against the University of Missouri, alleging open records violations related to the vehicle stops report, is ongoing.