Wash. Times: Profiling -- including by race -- a “time-honored ... staple of law enforcement”

In a July 14 editorial defending the Arizona's controversial immigration law, The Washington Times wrote that Attorney General Eric Holder “is crying wolf about race in Arizona” and stated:

Arizona's new immigration law, SB 1070, states clearly that police “may not consider race, color or national origin in implementing the requirements of this subsection except to the extent permitted by the United States or Arizona Constitution.” Profiling -- by a variety of indicants including race -- is a time-honored and generally legal staple of law enforcement. Profiling is based on observable deviations from established patterns of behavior that have a high probability of indicating criminal intent. In other words, it happens when police sense something fishy. A young white man driving slowly through certain quarters of Southeast Washington late at night is likely to be profiled and pulled over; it's possible his behavior is innocent, but the odds are strong that he is up to no good.