Illegal police stops by NYPD have increased under Mayor Eric Adams' administration, monitor says
NEW YORK — Illegal police stops by the New York City Police Department have drastically increased under Mayor Eric Adams' administration, according to a court-appointed monitor.
An audit released Wednesday found that the department is conducting more stops, frisks and searches overall, and more that violate the law.
In 2023, there were nearly 17,000 reported stops. That's nearly double the amount in 2020. According to the monitor, 12% of stops, 31% of frisks, and 33% of searches were unconstitutional.
The monitor said the NYPD's specialized neighborhood safety teams and public safety teams made the majority of those unlawful stops.
"We really need to look closely at those units regarding their effectiveness and true necessity, and whether or not they're actually harming New Yorkers rather than engaging in lawful policing," said Guadalupe Aguirre, a staff attorney for the New York Civil Liberties Union.
The NYPD released the following statement in response to the report:
"Public safety and constitutional policing are both critical components of the NYPD's mission, and members of the Department work tirelessly, every day, to keep people safe and to police fairly. The Department is proud that New York remains the safest big city in America and of the reforms that it has made, which the Monitor has recognized. The NYPD is committed to working collaboratively with the Monitor to address the areas of concern raised in this latest report."
When asked for comment, the mayor's office referred CBS News New York to police.