Santa Barbara Police present 2025 RIPA data: 13,253 stops reported; department says audits and training guide review

Commanders from the Santa Barbara Police Department presented the department’s 2025 racial and identity profiling act (RIPA) data to the Fire & Police Commission and described how the city collects, audits and uses that data.

Commander Nate Beltran said the department recorded 13,253 RIPA qualifying stops in 2025, an increase of nearly 2,000 stops from the prior year that he attributed to increased staffing and proactive field assignments. He described the RIPA process as four steps — encounter, officer perception of demographics, actions/outcomes, and review/submission to the California Department of Justice — and emphasized that RIPA entries record the officer’s perception “in the moment prior to the stop,” not how a person later self‑identifies.

Beltran gave a breakdown of perceived race in 2025: 5,977 stops perceived as white, 5,914 perceived as Hispanic, 727 perceived as Black or African‑American, and smaller counts for Asian, Middle Eastern/South Asian and other categories. He said perceived gender, disability and limited‑English proficiency were also recorded; 1,190 stops were marked as limited English proficiency and 3,545 stops were recorded as perceived unhoused status in 2025.

On outcomes, the department reported that verbal warnings were the most common result (4,684), followed by citation for an infraction (2,556) and custodial arrest without warrant (1,541). Most stops did not lead to a search; among the searches recorded, common legal bases were incident‑to‑arrest (1,468), parole/probation searches (833) and consent searches (663).

Beltran told commissioners that the department conducts proactive monthly audits that compare RIPA entries with body‑worn camera footage to check for accuracy and potential bias. Commissioners asked how perception categories (for example, perceived mental‑health disability or LGBTQ status) are determined; Beltran and Commander Charlie Katapus said those entries reflect the officer’s subjective perception but that training (for example, crisis intervention) and supervisory audits inform consistency and allow the department to monitor for bias.

The item was presented for information; commissioners asked clarifying questions but did not take formal action. The presenters offered to share the RIPA report with community stakeholders and noted that the department has used the data to guide training and policy reviews.