The NYPD's method for addressing vehicle-related crimes is under scrutiny following a joint lawsuit filed by several civil rights organizations. The claim? That traffic stops have become a tool for racial profiling, especially against Black and Latino drivers.
As reported by Gothamist, statistics indicate a stark rise in vehicle searches from 13,340 in 2022 to 28,416 in 2024 under former Mayor Eric Adams, with 84% involving Black and Latino individuals while white motorists accounted for less than 4%. Daniel Lambright of the NYCLU describes the situation as a "stop and frisk on wheels," harkening back to the controversial policy of Bloomberg's mayoral tenure when, similar racial disparities prevailed among pedestrian stops.
The lawsuit, as per CBS News New York, includes plaintiffs such as Justin Cohen, who recounts his 2023 Bronx traffic stop. Here, an officer is seen on body camera footage frisking him without finding any contraband. Cohen's ordeal left him apprehensive of law enforcement. "They're supposed to be people who protect us, but apparently they can do what they want," Cohen told CBS News New York.
Defending the NYPD's practices, Joshua Levin, the former director of legislative affairs claims they dispatch more officers to high-crime areas, thus the higher number of stops and searches is simply proportional. "Any time you have more police officers in a certain area, as a result you are going to see more enforcement," Levin explained in a City Council hearing last year. Meanwhile, the lawsuit seeks systemic changes to guarantee that New Yorkers of color are not unconstitutionally targeted, as per Gothamist.
