Press Releases

For immediate release: July 16, 2018

CPR Responds to NYPD Letter to U.S. Department of Justice Regarding Eric Garner

In response to the NYPD sending a letter to the U.S. Department of Justice regarding the killing of Eric Garner, Communities United for Police Reform released the following statement from spokesperson Carolyn Martinez-Class.

“This letter is more political theater by the de Blasio administration and NYPD to distract from the fact that four years after Eric Garner was killed, they have failed to hold any of the multiple officers responsible for the killing and related misconduct accountable.

For immediate release: July 9, 2018

Community Stakeholders to Stop-and-Frisk Lawsuit Urge Judge to Intervene & Mandate Key Reforms That NYPD is Resisting in New Legal Filing

Amicus brief on behalf of New Yorkers directly impacted by unconstitutional stops comes after years of court-ordered reform process has yielded almost none of central reforms to address core issues of unconstitutional stop-and-frisks

 

Though NYPD-reported stops have declined, officers fail to report them up to 73 percent of the time and thousands more encounters that may be unconstitutional stops are going unrecorded

New York, NY – Over 90 organizations from across New York City, 15 family members of New Yorkers killed by the NYPD, and others directly impacted by abusive policing supported an amicus brief filed in federal court by Communities United for Police Reform (CPR), urging the judge overseeing the stop-and-frisk cases to mandate the NYPD to adopt specific stop-and-frisk and trespass enforcement reforms. The court had named CPR as a community stakeholder in the court-ordered reform process that stemmed from the ruling in the federal class action lawsuit, Floyd v.

For immediate release: June 27, 2018

Family of Delrawn Small Calls on New External NYPD Panel on Discipline Policies to Review Case of Officer Wayne Isaacs as Example of Problem with Disciplinary System

Small’s brother and sister urge Mayor de Blasio & Commissioner O’Neill to bring charges and fire Isaacs for shooting and killing their brother, failing to alert 911 to shooting or render aid, and lying about incident

 

Nearly 2 years after Isaacs killed unarmed Small and over 7 months since murder trial concluded, officer has faced no discipline or even charges

The sister and brother of Delrawn Small, Victoria Davis and Victor Dempsey, were joined by elected officials, community supporters and other families whose loved ones were killed by the NYPD to demand police accountability. Specifically, they called for Mayor de Blasio and NYPD Commissioner O’Neill to ensure that Officer Wayne Isaacs, who killed Small, has departmental disciplinary charges brought against him immediately and is fired.

For immediate release: June 21, 2018

Family of Saheed Vassell & National Black Civil Rights Organization Color Of Change Deliver 20,000 Petitions from New Yorkers to Mayor de Blasio demanding Transparency

Petitions, along with community groups & elected officials, call for de Blasio administration to release names, unedited video footage and misconduct histories of officers who killed Vassell

After more than 11 weeks, de Blasio & NYPD refuse to release names of officers in shooting, despite cities across nation do so within 72 hours

Over 11 weeks after the NYPD killed unarmed Saheed Vassell in Crown Heights, the nation’s largest online racial justice organization – Color Of Change – joined Vassell’s parents and local community organizations to deliver 20, 000 petitions demanding transparency from Mayor de Blasio.

For immediate release: June 21, 2018

CPR Responds to Announcement of Panel on NYPD Discipline

In response to a report of NYPD announcing it has created an advisory panel to review its disciplinary policies, Communities United for Police Reform released the following statement from spokesperson Mark Winston Griffith, executive director of Brooklyn Movement Center.

For immediate release: June 19, 2018

Advocates Respond to Mayor de Blasio’s New Marijuana Enforcement Policy

In response to Mayor de Blasio unveiling a NYPD-created plan to change marijuana enforcement, Communities United for Police Reform released the following statement from spokesperson Monifa Bandele, a Senior Vice President at MomsRising.

For immediate release: June 18, 2018

Day after Families are Forced to Celebrate Father’s Day without Fathers who were Killed by NYPD, Family Members Demand Action from Mayor de Blasio

Families of Eric Garner, Delrawn Small & Saheed Vassell call for accountability and transparency for killings by NYPD officers, calling for firings and release of information

The families of Eric Garner, Delrawn Small, and Saheed Vasell – all fathers who missed Father’s Day with their families – and their community supporters called for Mayor de Blasio to take immediate action to hold the officers who killed them accountable. All of the families are being denied accountability by the de Blasio administration, with the NYPD failing to take actions to discipline and fire the officers responsible and withholding vital information from the families and public.

For immediate release: June 13, 2018

State Legislators & Advocates Call for Repeal of New York’s Police Secrecy Law That is among Worst in Nation

Problems with state law 50-a have recently been highlighted because of NYC Mayor de Blasio & NYPD’s frequently changing, new interpretations to hide more and more information on police misconduct

Several state legislators joined civil rights and advocacy organizations from across the state to announce support and call for repeal of New York State’s police secrecy law, 50-a. It is one of the worst laws in the nation blocking police transparency, and has seen an expanded use by political and police officials over the past four years to conceal basic and vital information about police misconduct and discipline from the public. Nowhere has this been more apparent than in New York City with the NYPD during the administration of Mayor Bill de Blasio.

For immediate release: June 12, 2018

NY Police Reform Campaign Responds to State Assembly Passage of Police Transparency & Accountability Legislation

Legislative body passed bill to codify and strengthen executive order establishing Office of New York Attorney General as special prosecutor in police killings, and requirement for the state to collect data on policing by local departments across state

In response to the New York State Assembly passing special prosecutor legislation (A.5617-Perry) today and a police data transparency bill (A.5946A – Lentol) a few days ago, Communities United for Police Reform released the following statement from spokesperson Kesi Foster, a lead organizer at Make the Road New York.

For immediate release: June 8, 2018

Former Tennis Pro James Blake Responds to Report That NYPD Officer Who Tackled Him & Placed Him in Handcuffs Only Lost Five Vacation Days

Final discipline was only half of what NYC Civilian Complaint Review Board recommended

In response to a New York Daily News report revealing that Officer James Frascatore only received a punishment of losing five vacation days for tackling and slamming James Blake to the ground before improperly placing him in handcuffs outside of his Manhattan hotel in 2015, Blake released the following statement.

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