What You Need To Know
The NYPD would have to record more information about civilian interactions every time they stop someone
Right now, they only record the most serious of interactions, when there's "reasonable suspicion" to stop an individual
Advocates said it aims to hold police officers accountable for unlawful stops
Opponents, including Mayor Adams, said it takes away time from officers doing their job to protect the public
“Increased access to policing data has been at the center of making our city safer for decades,” said City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams. “Police transparency is also pivotal to the trust with communities that has been necessary to improve safety and to help solve crime.”
The legislation passed the 51-member chamber with 35 Democrats in support. All seven Republicans in the chamber voted no, along with two Democrats—Councilmembers Marjorie Velazques and Erik Bottcher. Another three Democrats abstained.
Currently, officers only have to log information when they stop a person while investigating a crime. They fill out a form answering questions about where the stop occurred and what led to the stop.
Legally, police must record the interaction with a body camera and can only engage should there be “reasonable suspicion” that the person could help solve—or be associated with—a possible crime that occurred.
They’re called Level 3 stops, but more commonly known as “stop, question and frisk” tactics.
The law also requires lower-level interactions to be recorded. Officers will have to fill out a similar form, yet to be rolled out, prompting them to give details like age, gender and race.
The bill’s sponsor, Democratic Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, said in some cases officers will have to make an educated guess about those details, should an individual refuse an interview.
“Let’s get the information we need, with the least administrative burden as possible,” he said, ahead of the bill’s passage at City Hall.
“That’s what this bill does. There is no ‘pedigree information.’ You’re not asking for names, not asking for addresses, you’re simply looking at demographics. It’s four or five questions, one of which was recommended to us by the NYPD.”
The change has been in the works ever since the department’s “stop and frisk” policy was ruled unconstitutional over a decade ago. The policy found that Black and Brown New Yorkers were unfairly targeted and stopped more regularly, compared to whites.
A federal monitor overseeing the NYPD recommended lower-level stops be recorded to ensure the protection of civil liberties.
But Mayor Eric Adams, a former NYPD captain and transit officer, warned beat cops will become distracted from doing the main focus of the job they were hired to do: protect the public.
“You’re not going to be on patrol, you’re not going to be on a corner somewhere, with your head down filling out a form,” he explained during a briefing at City Hall on Wednesday. “So I’m telling that police officer ‘you’re now out of action, you’re going to go in your car and fill out that paperwork.’ That’s what the danger is. And if it was just one time a day, you’re doing that, but no! It’s every encounter you have.”
Republicans and law enforcement union officials argue it’ll further hurt morale in a department that’s already struggling to attract and retain new talent, especially after retirements tied to COVID-19.
City Councilman David Carr said it’s the latest attack on law enforcement by the Democratic-led Council, who in the past has tried to cut the NYPD’s budget.
“Now they’re trying to undermine our police force by killing them with paperwork, by saddling them with unnecessary tasks which are gonna prevent them from being exactly where we need them: out on the streets doing community policing,” he said.
But Williams argues it will fill a gap in reporting about investigations and add a layer of transparency, as the NYPD will be mandated to post the data for the public to view online.
“When you’re walking around the neighborhood, it doesn’t take long to fill out 20 seconds of questions. In a police department that has tech like a robo dog and a robo cop on the train,” he said.
Speaker Adrienne Adams, meanwhile, said she has enough votes to override a veto, should Mayor Adams deny the bill from becoming law in 30 days.