NYC Transit Searches: First Reports of Abuse Coming In
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It didn't take long for reports of abuse of discretion by rank and file police officers to surface:
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The "random" aspect of the searches is also somewhat of a joke so far. Police are keeping records of race and such (your tax dollars at work -- a cop standing around playing bookkeeper). Still, I have yet to see a single report or photo of any women, children or elderly being searched. Go figure.
I think what is going on is that the police talked themselves into a corner. They were so concerned about charges of "racial profiling" (which some bloggers think wouldn't be such a bad idea anyway) that they rushed to declare the program "random" -- which is exactly what may get them into trouble constitutionally -- see my previous post.
In reality though, the police are being less than totally random, which may in the end salvage the program. First, they seem to be searching only backpacks and large packages. Second, they are now backpedaling and emphasizing that there will in fact be some element of individualized suspicion in the selection criteria -- people who look nervous, who may be sweating excessively, who are dressed inappropriately for summer weather, etc.
Seems to me like the NYPD needs better public relations staffers. Their attempts so far to communicate their plans to the public have been pretty dismal so far.
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The New York Civil Liberties Union has a good summary of the issues and your rights in these searches and a survey form to report your experiences.
Ziaul Sarker, a 24-year-old city employee of Bangladeshi descent, had his identification checked by cops, who also wrote down his name.This is exactly why random searches are a bad thing, not a good thing. Police officers are not lawyers and must not be allowed to "make up" policies and procedures as they go along. "On the job training" has no place where the Constitution is concerned.
Collins later admitted the officers should not have been asking to see people's driver's licenses or taking names. "When we learned of it, we stopped it," he said.
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The "random" aspect of the searches is also somewhat of a joke so far. Police are keeping records of race and such (your tax dollars at work -- a cop standing around playing bookkeeper). Still, I have yet to see a single report or photo of any women, children or elderly being searched. Go figure.
I think what is going on is that the police talked themselves into a corner. They were so concerned about charges of "racial profiling" (which some bloggers think wouldn't be such a bad idea anyway) that they rushed to declare the program "random" -- which is exactly what may get them into trouble constitutionally -- see my previous post.
In reality though, the police are being less than totally random, which may in the end salvage the program. First, they seem to be searching only backpacks and large packages. Second, they are now backpedaling and emphasizing that there will in fact be some element of individualized suspicion in the selection criteria -- people who look nervous, who may be sweating excessively, who are dressed inappropriately for summer weather, etc.
Seems to me like the NYPD needs better public relations staffers. Their attempts so far to communicate their plans to the public have been pretty dismal so far.
---
The New York Civil Liberties Union has a good summary of the issues and your rights in these searches and a survey form to report your experiences.
All Related Posts (on one page) | Some Related Posts:
- Amtrak to Embrace Dubious Random Bag Searches
- Circuit Court Upholds Worthless Subway Searches
- The Random Searching of Pelham One Two Three...
- NYC Subway Searches: Here Come the Calls for Racial Profiling
- NYC Transit Searches: First Reports of Abuse Coming In
- NYC Mass Transit Begins Random Searches
- On "Consenting" versus "Submitting" to a Search
Posted by KipEsquire on
24 July 2005
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