ACLU Issues Report On Philadelphia Police Stop And Frisks
By Cherri Gregg
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- The ACLU issued its latest report today analyzing Philadelphia Police department data on the number of stop and frisks last year and, for the fourth year in row, it does not look good.
The Philadelphia police met with a federal judge to discuss the ACLU's 55 page report that analyzes a sample of data on the city's 200,000 pedestrian stops.
It shows 33% of stops and 42% of frisks were unlawful, with Blacks and Latinos impacted 80% of the time, the city data from the 3rd quarter showed even higher numbers.
"We just simply have to do a better job," says Philadelphia Police Commissioner Richard Ross.
He says the city will add accountability measures that require commanders to answer for non-compliant stops, they'll also do a better job of training police offers to consistently report stops in a more accurate way in the department database.
"The bottom line is the truth will be in the numbers coming forward," he says.
"We are hopeful that the steps they take lead to some significant improvements," says David Rudovsky, one of the lead attorneys who represents plaintiffs alongside the ACLU. He says they will be watching the number over the next six months.
"The proof will be in the pudding," he says, "if we don't see improvements, we'll have not choice but to ask the court to intervene."
The parties are scheduled to meet with the court again in September.
For a full copy of the new stop and frisk report, go to http://www.aclupa.org/bailey
