Cincinnati hires AH Datalytics to review police stop data after racial-disparity report
Cincinnati has selected New Orleans-based AH Datalytics to independently review years of Cincinnati Police Department contact-card data after a Campaign Zero report alleged racial disparities in police stops.
The city signed the contract in early September 2026, Assistant City Manager John Brazina said on September 11. The firm will examine CPD contact-card data and the methodology used in the Campaign Zero analysis. Preliminary findings and recommendations are expected to reach the city manager within about 30 days of the review’s start, with results expected in mid-October.
What the outside review will examine
Contact cards are forms Cincinnati police officers complete after certain stops. They record information such as a person’s demographics, the location of the stop and its outcome.
Cincinnati issued its request for proposals on June 12, 2026, and the solicitation closed June 22. The selection committee was chaired by Citizen Complaint Authority Director John Kennedy Jr. The city has not disclosed the contract cost.
The review is intended to give Cincinnati an independent analysis of the underlying data and the methods used to interpret it. It is not a final ruling on whether the reported disparities demonstrate discriminatory policing.
What Campaign Zero reported
Campaign Zero analyzed more than 15 years of CPD contact-card records, including stop locations, outcomes and the race of people officers stopped. According to WVXU‘s reporting, the group’s 2025 figures showed that Black people accounted for 80% of stopped motorists and 66% of stopped pedestrians, while Cincinnati’s population is about 40% Black.
The report described significant and increasing racial disparities even as the total number of police stops declined in recent years. A later Campaign Zero addendum addressed stops conducted by CPD task forces.
Those figures are allegations from an advocacy group’s analysis, not conclusions established by Cincinnati’s pending review. City officials have questioned parts of Campaign Zero’s methodology and said the organization did not provide the data to the city before releasing its report. Mayor Aftab Pureval, City Manager Sheryl Long and other officials have nevertheless said they remain committed to equity in policing.
How the review fits Cincinnati oversight
The review is part of Cincinnati’s continuing work under the principles of the Collaborative Agreement, the police-reform framework created after a 2001 federal lawsuit and formalized in 2002. The agreement’s formal legal period has ended, but the city has continued to emphasize its principles and related accountability work.
The city’s Collaborative Agreement Refresh framework emphasizes evaluation and accountability, community engagement, independent review and action steps. Local reporting says 35 of the refresh’s 52 recommendations are completed or in progress, including changes requiring officers to complete every contact-card field and use standardized location data.
The Citizen Complaint Authority was created through the Collaborative Agreement to provide independent civilian oversight of CPD and reports directly to the city manager. City officials have also said the CCA will help lead a problem-solving process that includes community input related to the stop-data review.
What happens next
AH Datalytics has about 30 days to conduct its analysis and provide the city manager with preliminary findings and recommendations. Those results could give city officials and community participants a clearer basis for evaluating the Campaign Zero report and considering possible next steps.
No policy change follows automatically from the contract. Any response will depend on the firm’s analysis, the city’s evaluation of its recommendations and the continuing community-accountability process. For Cincinnati residents, the next major milestone is the expected mid-October 2026 release of preliminary results—not a final determination about the Campaign Zero report.
Sources
- WVXU: Cincinnati selects outside firm to review police stop data
- City of Cincinnati contact-card review RFP listing
- City of Cincinnati: Collaborative Agreement Refresh
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