Stop and Frisk as used in New York is in my mind the commission of a series of crimes in the hope of deterring other crime. The New York City Police Department commits crimes by frisking using racial profiling and quotas not legitimate police methods. There is no way you can within the law stop and frisk people based on pigmentation and an arbitrary number of stops while still passing constitutional muster.
But I’m also worried about the effect this has on the individual policeman. If the public is just a series of quota targets to be harassed, searched or arrested, when does doing justice or serving the public come into the question? At what point, does police work become the practice of an occupying military force as opposed to public service? What does this practice do to public perception of police? When does a police department become a military force to be used at the discretion of its leadership (like below)?
Mayor Michael Bloomberg, speaking at
MIT on Wednesday about the city’s workforce, overreached with his
description of the police force which has been lambasted for pepper
spraying protesters lining Wall Street in recent weeks.
‘I have my own army in the NYPD, which is the seventh largest army in the world,’ he said.
If the police are an army to be used at the whim of a mayor, the goals of law enforcement are being threatened by politicization. This is poor policy.
Public trust and cooperation are critical elements in police work. The public is not a single community but a variety of communities based on economics, race and geography. Writing one or two off is bad police work and will have critical long term results.
Stop and frisk as a form of pre-emptive strike against minority crime is clearly unconstitutional.
It needs to end now.
James Pilant
NYPD Officer Adhyl Polanco Speaks Out Against Stop And Frisk In Video
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/10/08/nypd-stop-and-frisk_n_4066335.html
Adhyl Polanco, an officer since 2005, has become an outspoken critic of the NYPD\’s policy, which critics say disproportionately targets blacks and Latinos for police stops. He recorded his supervisors asking beat cops to meet a monthly arrest quota and testified in the recent federal trial that found New York City\’s use of stop and frisk unconstitutional.
\”This is not what I became a cop for,\” Polanco says of stop and frisk in the video, which was produced by the reform advocacy group Communities United for Police Reform and released on YouTube on Monday. \”This is not what I wanted to do.\”
A Vera Institute of Justice study released last month found that the experience of being stopped made New Yorkers less likely to trust the police. New York City is currently appealing a federal judge\’s recent ruling against stop and frisk, which prompted outrage from critics at a Monday rally.
via NYPD Officer Adhyl Polanco Speaks Out Against Stop And Frisk In Video.
From around the web.
From the web site, The Bronx Beat.
http://thebronxbeat.wordpress.com/2013/07/17/stop-and-frisk-intended-for-minorities/
Mayor Bloomberg has always been a strong
supporter of the New York Police Department. After Mayor Bloomberg Came
into office, those stopped and frisked has increased by more than 600%
reported nyclu.com (New York Civil Liberties). He has vetoed two bills
that were supposed to reform the stop and frisk policy that has caught
the attention of so many, especially those of minority groups reported
slate.com
Minority groups have always been the red
dot on the dart board, the scapegoats, the ones to who get slapped in
the head and no one gets punished. Thousands of Latinos and African
Americans are stopped and frisked on a yearly basis; up to 85% according
to slate.com. Mayor Bloomberg is convince that this is a very
productive policy.
The stop and frisk policy is not only
embarrassing but also condescending. Often times the police racially
profile young men on the streets and if they fit a certain description
then they must be guilty of something. The system is meant uphold white
supremacy as long as possible and this scheme of theirs shouldn’t be a
shocker when we recall historical events.
From the web site, The Bronx Beat.
http://thebronxbeat.wordpress.com/2013/07/17/prejudiced-policies/
As he walks home, a man of color is susceptible to be stopped and
frisked by police. Why? Because he simply looks suspicious to them.
Wearing baggy clothing alone could tempt an abusive police officer to
stop him. This man who was stopped can easily be a certified lawyer, a
college student, or even a hardworking father. This man could have been
very busy. However, he patiently waits to ensure that the police collect
evidence of his “unlawful” behavior – which most of the time turn out
to be perfectly legal.
Government abuse like the one mentioned above is a daily routine for
people of color. Whether they like it or not, race remains an essential
element that aids the police to their main targets, and they, whether
they are adults or teenagers, have to live with it.
Blacks, Hispanics and other minority groups who simply look
“threatening” to those stereotyping them have to deal with intrusive
police suspicion. They must endure frequent subway searches that prove
to lessen the amount of street crime and violence in New York State.
From the web site, The Bronx Beat.
http://thebronxbeat.wordpress.com/2013/07/17/stop-and-frisk-colored-people-only/
“Judging by the cover of the book,” A mentality is drawn upon certain
races so when an authority sees that race, already, he or she is
thinking that this person might be doing something illegal.
The Stop and Frisk policy is a policy that over years has caused
problems to many people and their lives. The simple idea of stopping,
when asked to then later being let go because you’re safe is more
embarrassing and hurtful then actually being caught if you had some sort
of bad possession on you. Why do I say this? Because it’s embarrassing
and hurtful to be stopped and frisked because you’re being suspected of
something, the reason being you’re dressed a certain way and/or your
race.
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