A invoice making its approach by the New York state legislature would prohibit police from conducting site visitors stops for minor violations in an effort to restrict pointless stops and additional “racial equity and public safety.”
The proposal would bar officers from pulling individuals over or looking them for numerous site visitors violations, together with having a taillight out, expired car registration tags, an excessive amount of window tint or if the odor of marijuana is detected.
In sure circumstances, proof collected in violation of the invoice could also be excluded in courtroom.
The measure goals to restrict “the frequency of traffic stops for minor violations in furtherance of racial equity and public safety,” in keeping with the invoice, as racial minorities within the state make up nearly all of arrests and site visitors stops.
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A invoice making its approach by the New York state legislature would prohibit police from conducting site visitors stops for minor violations. (Nicolas Economou/NurPhoto by way of Getty Pictures)
In Nassau County alone, black and Latino residents account for 61% of arrests, 50% of site visitors stops, 60% of area interviews and 69% of pat-downs, regardless of making up underneath 30% of the county’s inhabitants mixed, police knowledge exhibits.
White drivers are issued a median of 1.3 tickets per cease in comparison with two tickets for black drivers and a pair of.1 for Latino drivers, the information exhibits.
A lawsuit in opposition to Nassau argues that police within the county have acted with racial bias when conducting site visitors stops.
Nassau County Government Bruce Blakeman instructed reporters on Friday it’s “ridiculous” to argue that there’s racial bias in policing throughout site visitors stops, saying that officers are normally unaware of the motive force’s race earlier than making a cease.
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The measure goals to restrict “the frequency of traffic stops for minor violations in furtherance of racial equity and public safety.” (Howard Schnapp/Newsday RM)
“It’s just a bizarre argument, it’s pro-criminal,” Blakeman mentioned, in keeping with the New York Publish. “It doesn’t matter what race you are. If you’re breaking the law, then you’re breaking the law.”
Nassau Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder mentioned minor infractions comparable to damaged lights or expired registrations sometimes result in warnings however that proscribing the power to implement the legislation makes the roads much less secure.
“They say the roads are so bad in Nassau County. Well, you would just be taking another tool away from us that’s going to get these bad drivers off the road,” he instructed reporters. “Stop taking the handcuffs off of the criminals and putting them onto our men and women in law enforcement.”
The county’s district lawyer, Anne Donnelly, mentioned the proposal “is the most ridiculous thing I have seen in my 36 years in law enforcement.”
Nassau County District Legal professional Anne Donnelly mentioned the proposal “is the most ridiculous thing I have seen in my 36 years in law enforcement.” (Getty Pictures)
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Donnelly additionally mentioned she believes the invoice would disproportionately affect Nassau due to the area’s excessive variety of drivers and automobile accidents, as she claims it could enable individuals to basically get away with breaking the legislation, in keeping with the NYP.
She referenced a site visitors cease that resulted within the 1993 seize of serial killer Joel Rifkin, who murdered not less than 17 individuals within the space earlier than he was stopped over the lacking license plate on the rear of his pick-up truck that had a physique in its trunk, the outlet reported.
“When an officer walks up to a driver and asks them for their license and registration — they never know what is going to happen next,” Donnelly mentioned. “It’s important to be able to make these legitimate stops. There is no such thing as a routine traffic stop.”
