Poll: Sweeping change in Americans' views of police violence

DETROIT — A dramatic shift has taken place in the nation’s opinions on policing and race, as a new poll finds that more Americans today than five years ago believe police brutality is a very serious problem that too often goes undisciplined and unequally targets black Americans.

The poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research finds that about half of American adults now say police violence against the public is a “very” or “extremely” serious problem. Only about 3 in 10 said the same in July 2015.

Those who say it is not a serious problem has declined from a third in 2015 to about 2 in 10 today.