Detroit councilman says traffic stop led to 'bogus' ticket, claims race was an issue

DETROIT – A Detroit city councilman says he wasn't drunk and was a victim of racial profiling when he was stopped by police.

George Cushingberry Jr. tells the Detroit Free Press (http://on.freep.com/1gNuCfL ) he was ticketed Tuesday for failing to use a turn signal after leaving a bar. He calls it "bogus."

Cushingberry admits there was a strong smell of marijuana, but he attributes it to a passenger who had a medical marijuana card. He says an empty rum bottle was from an old party.

Police Chief James Craig Jr. says there will be an investigation of how a supervisor handled the stop. Police spokesman Sgt. Michael Woody says it seems Cushingberry should have been arrested.

Cushingberry, who is black, claims he was targeted by two white officers. Detroit is 82 percent black.

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Information from: Detroit Free Press, http://www.freep.com