A report on the controversial practice of street checks in Halifax has been delayed until March.

The Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission confirmed to Global News that the report will be released March 27.

The delay was first reported in The Coast.

Scot Wortley, a University of Toronto criminology professor and researcher on race and crime, is the man writing the report. He was hired by the commission in 2017 to investigate the crime-fighting potential of police street checks and weigh it against the possible negative impact on racialized communities.

Street checks, also known as carding, refer to the police technique of stopping people when no specific offence is being investigated, questioning them and recording their information.

Data has shown that in Halifax, black men were three times more likely than whites to be subjected to the controversial practice.

Jeff Overmars, a spokesperson for the human rights commission, says the delay is necessary for Wortley to complete his report.

In a meeting of the municipality’s Board of Police Commissioners in December, an update on the report was given behind closed doors.

Commissioners did not comment about the nature of the update or what it contained once the closed-door session ended.

Wortley told media that he had informed the board about “preliminary findings and the direction the report is going.”

“The report will hopefully be ready in the new year,” he added.

As part of his independent review, Wortley met with multiple members of the HRP from all levels of policing — including crime analysts, detectives in major crimes, sergeants, patrol officers and Halifax Regional Police Chief Jean Michel Blais.

Wortley has also met with RCMP detachments in Sackville, Tantallon, North Preston and Cole Harbour.

He also held 11 community meetings in the HRM and hosted an online survey that sought input from the general public.

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