A federal judge has ruled that the Boston Police Department's 2008 promotional exam discriminated against minorities. The exam was used to choose police lieutenants, but was proven to lean in favor of white applicants over minorities.
It was reported that those who took the exam in 2008 included 65 Caucasians, 25 African-Americans and one 1 Hispanic. Out of 91 who took the exam, 33 sergeants were promoted to lieutenants, according to NECN. Twenty-eight of those officers were white and the five others were black. Their scores for promotion was based on the 2008 civil service exam.
"This is a profoundly important case, one that evokes the finest of our nation's aspirations to give everyone equal opportunity and a fair shot," U.S. District Judge William G. Young said in his decision Monday, according to The Boston Globe.
The judge figured that the exam mainly focused on abilities such as reading, understanding, interpreting and explaining but did not consider skills such as reasoning, judgement, and the ability to instruct subordinates.
The exam "had a racially disparate impact and was not sufficiently job-related," he added.
Despite the decision, Young believes that the exam was not deliberately done created to discriminate against minorities.
"This is not a case about conscious racial prejudice," Young wrote, according to Reuters. "Rather, the plaintiffs' case is rooted in their allegation that the seemingly benign multiple-choice examination promotion process, while facially neutral, was slanted in favor of white candidates."
Ten plaintiffs filed their case in 2012 and their lawyer said that he will be satisfied after promotions and monetary settlements are made.
The spokesman for the police said that they will review the judge's decision but have not concluded if they will appeal on the case. However, they are agreeable to "diversifying the ranks," Commissioner William Evans said, ABC News reported.
