San Francisco Mayor Mulls Stop-And-Frisk Policy To Reduce Crime
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS/AP) -- San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee said he's considering implementation of the stop-and-frisk policy used in New York and Philadelphia to reduce crime.
In an interview with the San Francisco Chronicle editorial board on Wednesday, Lee said police officers need stop-and-frisk to get guns off the streets.
Civil rights groups have criticized stop-and-frisk as racial profiling, saying the policy disproportionately affects Hispanics and blacks. Thousands of demonstrators marched through New York's streets in June to protest stop-and-frisk.
Lee is a former civil rights lawyer who doesn't really want to bring stop-and-frisk to San Francisco, but he did say he would talk to New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and others who have found those policies to be effective at curbing violent crime.
Although stop-and-frisk probably won't happen in San Francisco, the rhetoric shows just how frustrated Lee has become with gun violence in the city.
KCBS, CBS 5 and Chronicle Insider Phil Matier:
Lee has stretched the debate with an attention-getting statement that shows he plans to get a lot tougher on crime by considering solutions that might lie outside San Francisco's comfort zone.
Consider a recent sweep that saw 60 parolees and others on probation rounded up for various violations over the last couple of weeks, targeted enforcement that shares the same goal as stop-and-frisk.
Lee seems to be saying that jobs and summer programs aren't enough to solve the problems of guns on the street, and is prodding San Francisco to consider unorthodox solutions.
Lee said he wants to explore the idea after discussing the policy with New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
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