Civilian Complaint Review Board begins investigating racial profiling, bias complaints against NYPD officers
NEW YORK -- An independent city watchdog agency that can investigate the NYPD has new authority to look into complaints of racial profiling.
CBS2's Ali Bauman explains what it means for New Yorkers.
The Civilian Complaint Review Board is hitting the streets and informing New Yorkers the police oversight board now has authority to investigate complaints of racial profiling and bias-based profiling against NYPD officers.
"Putting in place these rules, we are able to look at police when they do do racial profiling, when it is biased-based policing and it's important for that accountability to be in place and hopefully for the next generation to not have them being stopped by a police officer as being that memorable of a moment," said Arva Rice, interim CCRB chair.
Complaints of bias were investigated internally by the NYPD before the City Council voted to give the CCRB, an independent agency, this authority.
Over the last eight years, the board said there were 3,400 complaints of bias. Four were substantiated by the NYPD.
"So we believe as a result of those numbers, that it is important for the CCRB to take over this role and function," said Rice.
Darius Charney is director of the board's new unit for these cases.
"Well I think in terms of police oversight generally, I think we're ahead of the curb," said Charney. "But when it comes to actually investigating complaints of bias policing, I think New York City was very much behind the curve."
The CCRB also now has the power to investigate "misuse of body-worn cameras" as well as what's called "past professional conduct" for officers previously found guilty.
An NYPD spokesperson told us the department "has directly engaged with executives from the CCRB on the implementation of this law," but called the inclusion of body-worn camera misuse "a substantial overreach."
The CCRB is already investigating its first bias cases. After investigating, the board presents its findings to the NYPD. The police commissioner has final say on discipline.