The New York Police Department received some good news recently when court-appointed mediator Philip Zimroth praised the NYPD in his report about stop-and-frisk practices in the Big Apple. But the debate about stops on city streets is continuing, with the ACLU challenging search procedures in two other major cities: Boston and Chicago.
In 2014 the Boston Police Department released a report about field, interrogation, and observation (FIO) stops that raised questions that have yet to be resolved. The report was a mixture of good and bad news for the BPD. Data showed that the FIO stops targeted areas with high crime rates, individuals with criminal records, and gang members. Five percent of individuals accounted for 40 percent of the stops.
But the report also showed evidence of racial disparities. Black subjects were eight percent more likely to be stopped repeatedly and 12 percent more likely to be searched, even when data was controlled for other factors. Latinos also were disproportionately stopped.
The surprise is that the questions were raised not by the ACLU or an advocacy group, but by the Boston Police Department itself. Police Commissioner William B. Evans noted that the BPD was taking steps to address this issue. “While there is still some work be to done to ensure we are closing the gap on these racial disparities,” Evans said, “the numbers of overall FIO activity are encouraging, and indicates the Department is headed in the right direction.”
But the ACLU was troubled by the report and its aftermath. The problem is that the BPD has not released any data since January 2011. When the ACLU asked for more recent statistics 11 months ago, the BPD did not respond. Matthew Segal, legal director of the ACLU of Massachusetts, says, “The people of Boston deserve to know whether that sort of treatment is continuing.”
In a statement, the BPD said Thursday that it has “been in touch with the ACLU and looks forward to resolving this issue expeditiously and in the interest of transparency.” But the ACLU has decided that instead of waiting, it will sue the BPD for the information it has requested.
The other city in question is Chicago, where questions about racial profiling have resulted in a voluntary agreement to release more data. A March ACLU report showed that minorities, who represent 32 percent of Chicago’s residents, were the subject of 72 percent of all stops.
The Chicago Police Department responded by promising to provide increased public disclosure and more officer training. Calling the agreement “unprecedented,” Superintendent Garry McCarthy said that the evaluations will bear out his assertion that the stops have been constitutional. ‘‘It’s not going to be a change in the actual way that we stop people, it’s going to be a change in the way that we record the stop.’’
The city and the CPD will now collect and publish additional data about investigatory stops, including those that don’t lead to an arrest. The data will include officers’ names and badge numbers; the race, ethnicity, and gender of the person stopped; and the reason for the stop, along with its location, date, and time.
At a press conference, McCarthy said he was pleased that his department was not compelled to take action by a court order. Harvey Grossman, legal director for the ACLU, is also pleased by the agreement. “What we have done here is move past the litigation process and advanced directly to a collaborative process,” Grossman said, “to insure that stops on Chicago streets meet constitutional and legal standards.”
Thomas Manger, the president of the Major Cities Chiefs Association, said other departments would be wise to follow Chicago’s lead, adding that it’s better for community relations to resolve such matters without going to court.
To learn more:
http://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2015/08/06/aclu-mass-sues-boston-police-for-stop-records/bwB1ObCC8J4McpcwmfJMMK/story.html?event=event25
https://www.bostonglobe.com/news/nation/2015/08/07/chicago-police-independent-stop-and-frisk-evaluations/5nLo6DpsmGoNwbQwAnm7DO/story.html
https://www.lawenforcementtoday.com/2015/07/15/a-report-card-on-nypds-stop-and-frisk-practices/
http://bpdnews.com/news/2014/10/8/boston-police-commissioner-announces-field-interrogation-and-observation-fio-study-results
http://fxn.ws/1UuE2AD
http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Justice/2015/0807/Chicago-police-ACLU-reach-agreement-on-stop-and-frisk-practice
Jean Reynolds, Ph.D. is Professor Emeritus of English at Polk State College, where she taught report writing and communication skills in the criminal justice program. She has published ten books, including Police Talk (Pearson), and she publishes the Police Writer Newsletter. Visit her website at www.YourPoliceWrite.com for free report writing resources. Go to www.Amazon.com for a free preview of her book Criminal Justice Report Writing. Instructors and supervisors can request a free Instructor’s Manual by sending an email from an official account to jreynoldswrite@aol.com. Dr. Reynolds is the report-writing expert for Law Enforcement Today.
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