Watch CBS News

City: Stops And Frisks Hit 10-Year Low Last Quarter

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) - New data shows that the number of stop-and-frisk stops in New York City over recent months fell to levels not seen in nearly 10 years.

City lawyers cited the numbers in a letter sent Tuesday to a federal judge, the New York Times reported. Judge Shira Scheindlin ruled earlier this month that the police department violated the civil rights of minorities with the controversial policy. She ordered an outside monitor to oversee major changes to the policy.

The city on Tuesday asked the judge to hold off on implementing her ruling until their appeal is decided.

The data showed that from April through June, police conducted 58,000 stops, compared to 99,780 during the first quarter of 2013. The number was well below the 203,500 stops in the first quarter of 2012, the highest number of stops in any quarter during Mayor Michael Bloomberg's tenure.

"We believe that the District Court orders are erroneous as matters of law, and because implementation of the broad-sweeping panoply of remedies based on such errors are likely to cause irreparable harm to defendants and the public safety," the city's lawyers wrote in their request to Scheindlin.

Judge Scheindlin ruled that the stop-and-frisk policy amounts to "indirect racial profiling," in which "minorities are indeed treated differently than whites," and, "officers are conducting stops in a racially discriminatory manner."

Bloomberg and other officials have credited the policy in part for a dramatic drop in the homicide rate. The city averages one homicide a day currently, compared to six in 1990.

Bloomberg and police commissioner Ray Kelly have repeatedly blasted those who say the police force engages in racial profiling while carrying out the stop-and-frisk policy.

You May Also Be Interested In These Stories

(TM and © Copyright 2013 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2013 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.