In the News
WNYC: NYPD Conducts Suspicionless Stops in Private Buildings: Suit
A federal class action was filed against New York City and Police Commissioner Ray Kelly on Wednesday for what plaintiffs allege are suspicionless stops within…
Reuters: NYS law requires two forms of bail for defendants: Court of Appeals
Trial judges in New York are required by state law to set at least two forms of bail for criminal defendants, the state’s top court…
WNYC The Brian Lehrer Show: Loitering Settlement
McGregor Smyth, managing attorney in the civil action practice at Bronx Defenders, discusses the recent class action suit around improper loitering violations. Listen here.
Reuters: U.S. judge limits stop and frisk searches in New York’s Bronx
A federal judge on Tuesday ordered the New York Police Department to immediately stop conducting trespass stops outside certain residential buildings in the borough of…
Amsterdam News: Hands Off: Black community responds to U.S. District Court ruling of NYPD’s “Clean Halls” as unconstitutional
Could this be the first step to eliminating “stop and frisk?” On Tuesday morning, a U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York…
The Huffington Post: Stop-And-Frisk Without Suspicion Must Cease In The Bronx, Judge Says
NEW YORK — The New York City Police Department likely turned a blind eye to violations of the constitutional rights of thousands of individuals detained…
AlterNet: Hypocritical NYPD Continues Racist Pot Arrest Crusade
Despite a well-publicized police order instructing officers not to use bogus pretexts to justify marijuana arrests, New York City remains the pot-bust capital of the…
New York Times: Letter in response to “The Jury’s Duty When the Law Is Unfair”
To the Editor: What is hidden behind the heated philosophical debate that jury nullification generates are the real people and communities affected by prosecutorial and…
WNYC: Marijuana Arrests Dip After NYPD Order, But Allegations of Improper Arrests Continue
Marijuana arrests in New York City are still high, but slowing down slightly. Police officers made 13 percent fewer arrests for low-level marijuana possession in…
Solitary Watch: City to Sharply Increase Solitary Confinement on Rikers Island
Over the past year, the New York City Department of Corrections (NYCDOC) has quietly implemented a massive expansion in the number of solitary confinement units…