The number of stop and frisks of potential suspects conducted by the New York City Police Department topped the 600,000 mark for the first time last year.
That is according to department statistics made public Tuesday.
Civil rights advocates say the practice unfairly targets blacks and other minorities, and that many stops are made without proper cause.
Police say it is an essential crime-fighting tool. They also say the number is actually smaller compared to the 23 million contacts officers have with the public.
“The situations drive the use of that tactic. It depends on what conditions police officers find in the street,” said Police Commissioner Ray Kelly.
The NYPD says that about 10 percent of the stops resulted in arrests and that last year those stops helped police officers take 8,000 weapons off the streets.
The previous high for stop and frisks was set in 2009 with more than 575,000. However, the department points out that statistics were not even kept until the 1990s — when the crime rate was much higher — meaning the number of stops might have been higher as well.
(Source: NY1)
Join the official YWN WhatsApp status
One Response
“Civil rights advocates say the practice unfairly targets blacks” – yeah, let’s adapt the TSA logic, and make sure to frisk white grandmas in equal measure when the suspect is described as a young black male.