Police Stop and Frisk

By: Nelson Sanchez

About the Issue

The NYPDs stop-and-frisk practices raise serious concerns over racial profiling, illegal stops and privacy rights. The Departments own reports on its Stop-and-Frisk activity confirm what many people in communities of color across the city have long known: The police are stopping hundreds of thousands of law abiding New Yorkers every year, and the vast majority are black and Latino.

Stop & Frisk Statistics

In 2011, 685,724 New Yorkers were stopped by the police. 605,328 were totally innocent (88%) 350,743 were black (53%) 223,740 were Latino (34%) 61,805 were white (9%) 341,581 were aged 14-24 (5%)

A Justified Stop
The police say a justified stop occurs when people: Appear not to fit the time or place. Match the description on a "Wanted" flyer. Act strangely or are emotional, angry, fearful, or intoxicated. Are loitering or looking for something. Are running away or engaging in furtive movements. Are present at a crime scene area. Are present in a high-crime area (not sufficient by itself or with loitering).

A Justified Frisk
The police say they frisk people when they: Feel concerned for the safety of the officer or of others. Suspect the subject is armed and dangerous. Suspect the subject is about to commit a crime where a weapon is commonly used.

Are alone and backup has not arrived.

Feel threatened by the number of suspects and their physical size. Feel threatened or concerned about the Behavior, emotional state, and/or look of suspects. Feel the suspect has given evasive answers during the initial stop.

Stop and Frisk Can Lead to Police Brutality

Stop and Frisk creates tension between the group being targeted and the police. Can lead to excessive force or police brutality. As blacks and Latinos are increasingly targeted, more questions arise regarding officers intent and cultural sensitivity training.

Excessive Force or Reasonable Procedure?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lAjLDmPbVUU& feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0T2zObZ8bAE&f eature=related

The Issue of Police Brutality Is Relevant Around the World

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K60mtLSwwM8&featu re=related

The Impact of Police Brutality On Victims

Police Brutality is defined as unmerited, excessive and aggressive abuse. It is a phenomenon that causes irreparable harm to its victims. The abuse may be physical or psychological, and the victims can feel the effects of this abuse for a lifetime. These effects include not only physical wounds, but also psychological ones. In some cases, the community also experiences the impact of police brutality on its victims.

Community Impact
Police abuse and misconduct affects communities in many different aspects. One reason is the simple fact the members of the community lose trust in the system that we have set up to protect us. Another powerful impact is the cycle it creates for future generations of minorities.

Community Aspirations
What do the communities of color want with respect to being stopped by the police? They want to be treated with respect; to feel safe and confident that they were stopped because of their behavior and not because of the color of their skin

Up until this point I have largely ignored the disparities in the groups that are mostly affected by Stop and Frisk
Communities of color see this issue as a pivotal one in evaluating the practice.

The evidence from legal actions, media coverage and other sources suggests that many black and Latinos are concerned, frustrated, and angry about these disparities.

Communities Efforts
Civilian Review Boards consist of persons who are not police officers. They review complaints against police and recommend disciplinary actions. By 1997, nearly 75% of the largest U.S. cities had civilian review procedures. The boards try to restrain problem cops who engage in brutality, harassment, and other forms of citizen abuse. Additionally, they strive to ensure an impartial investigation of all citizen complaints. In practice, however, departments often ignore citizens' recommendations. During the mid 1990s, the New York Police Department failed to take action on 33% - 50% of the police misconduct cases that had been substantiated by an independent civilian review board.

What Can Be Done?

Increase the education requirement for officers from a high school diploma to a bachelors degree. Having the ability to administer that level of force should require a superior understanding of the complexities involved including race, class, gender, violence, etc.

These things have multifarious ways of impinging on effective communication and can hinder the officers ability to facilitate respectful and effective interactions.
Pursue an aggressive civilian review board as a safeguard could work to amend the perception of the police force. Active Community Support through peaceful rallies, protests, and demonstrations.

Demonstration for Ramarley Graham , an unarmed African-American teenager killed by an NYPD officer

Works Cited:
http://www.nyclu.org/issues/racial-justice/stop-and-frisk-practices http://www.legalzoom.com/us-law/privacy/when-can-police-stop http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0T2zObZ8bAE&feature=related http://thefreshxpress.com/2010/06/police-brutality-and-the-blackcommunity/ http://www.copblock.org/13314/the-long-term-effects-of-policebrutality/ http://www.cliffsnotes.com/study_guide/Police-Brutality.topicArticleId10065,articleId-9975.html http://www.jjay.cuny.edu/US_Lamberth_The_Effectiveness_of_Stop_a nd_Frisk_in_the_United_StatesFinal.pdf