Why Is the N.Y.P.D. After Me? (Racial Profiling)

[tijo]

They could've seen these charts and now act accordingly
Bureau of Justice Statistics Homicide trends in the U.S.: Trends by race

There's one thing i don't like about those kind of charts is that they usually make no differentiation between social status (and i'm not just talking about income here). If for example, a population of a certain race tends to be poorer and live in tougher areas, then is the crime rate really a result of race or is it more tied to the environment those people are living in.

I think that's about as much i can say on the subject without going too political or into much deeper social discussions.

[Kuroi-Tsubasa]

I can't even see the chart; I always get timed out :/

I agree with tijo about the social/economic status, however.

[LIVEFRMNYC]

As a black person raised in NYC, it's not profiling itself that's the main problem. Sure racial profiling is a problem, but it's the way we are treated when pulled over or stopped while walking the street that's the main problem.

I experienced all types of BS with the police. From having 4 huge plain clothes cops jump out of a parked or moving unmarked car, and grabbing me(or us) up for no real reason. To having 2 or more marked patrol cars blocking me(or us) while driving or walking and having to line up against the wall. I could take up more than 2 pages of this thread explaining all the times I was messed with for no reason.

And the whole "you fit the description" excuse is ancient. I've lived in about 7 states and the cops in NYC are the worst.

[DexterMorgan]

it's not profiling itself that's the main problem. ..... but it's the way we are treated when pulled over or stopped while walking the street that's the main problem.

This.
Profiling can be done right or wrong.

To give an example, suppose there is a gang of of hoodlums who all have May 1 as their birthday. In case of a suspected crime by that gang, it makes sense to look more closely on May 1 birthday peeps. BUT, seeing as how most of the May 1 birthday peeps are decent people, treat them with decency UNTIL YOU GET EVIDENCE THAT THEY ARE CRIMINALS.


It seems that for those cops, sane racial profiling has turned into racial sterotyping, ie, a change from:
Criminals are usually of color X
to
People of color X are usually criminals.


There is a world of difference between the two viewpoints.

[Ferrari]

NYC is a lost cause.

Mayor Bloomberg is a tyrant and belongs in jail and the NYC police department needs to stop their unconstitutional "sop and frisk" activities.

The police and .gov can profile all they want but it is unlawful for them to stop and search you without probable cause and/or a warrant.

[DexterMorgan]

The police and .gov can profile all they want but it is unlawful for them to stop and search you without probable cause and/or a warrant.

Didnt think about that. So why isnt the NYPD buried under lawsuits/in jail for breaking the law?

[key001]

Didnt think about that. So why isnt the NYPD buried under lawsuits/in jail for breaking the law?

They are not breaking the law.
N.Y. CPL. LAW § 140.50 : NY Code - Section 140.50: Temporary questioning of persons in public places; search for weapons

[Mr_Mysterious]

^Yes, and that's also based on the Terry Stop but you still need to have a legitimate, a reasonable suspicion that someone is committing a crime.

Mr. Mysterious

[TheArnski]

it's the way we are treated when pulled over or stopped while walking the street that's the main problem.

I agree.

Like in that one example I had with the Latino fellow, he was instantly treated like he murdered someone by the cop that stopped to profile him. The guy was even respectful to the cop, but the cop kept shoving him into the wall while asking him questions.

In my 25 years, I've seen many instances of this. Even outside of the race issue, I often get questioned and stopped because I skateboard. I was just skating around downtown once, not even jumping stairs or grinding ledges, just cruising on the sidewalk, and a cop on a bike stopped me to "question" me. He took my board and held onto it, ziptied me, and me me sit on the sidewalk. All of this just to ask if I had any idea who might have put graffiti on a building somewhere else downtown.

need to have a legitimate, a reasonable suspicion that someone is committing a crime.

It may be because I am biased when it comes to cops (I don't think all are bad cops though, i have seen a fair share of really nice cops), but I bet to the cops, they "always" have a legitimate and reasonable suspicion.

[yuio]

lol because you live in a police state.

I'm more worried about cops than I am about the drug-head down the street, at least he can't beat me up and get away with it...

sure there is lots of good cops, but there are to many bad ones for me to trust them.