Civil Rights
Suit Claims N.Y. Police Bias in Stop-and-Frisk Policy
Posted May 8, 2008, 12:09 pm CDT
By Debra Cassens Weiss
The New York Police Department is accused of racial bias in a lawsuit challenging its stop-and-frisk policy.
The suit by the New York Civil Liberties Union claims that blacks were targeted in more than half of the stops, even though blacks make up only about a quarter of the population in the city, the Associated Press reports.
The plaintiff is a freelancer for the New York Post, Leonardo Blair, who was stopped and frisked by police last November, the New York Post reports. NYCLU’s executive director, Donna Lieberman, told AP that Blair was stopped simply for walking down the street.
"Walking while black is not a crime, and yet every year hundreds of thousands of innocent New Yorkers are stopped, searched and interrogated by the police for doing just that."
NYPD Commissioner Raymond Kelly told the Post the policy is "an important tool in keeping this city safe."
Related Stories
- ‘Profile’ Investigations By FBI Being Considered at DOJ
Jul 3, 2008, 02:04 pm CDT - Judge Nixes Execution Date for Longest-Serving Texas Inmate
Jul 3, 2008, 12:35 pm CDT - Texas Judge and Law Prof in Civil Rights Case is Arrested
Jul 3, 2008, 12:10 pm CDT - New ‘Rule of Law Index’ Will Measure World Justice
Jul 3, 2008, 10:56 am CDT
Related Topics
Commenting has expired on this post.
Comments
Be the first to comment.