Filed Date: May 19, 2010
Closed Date: 2013
Clearinghouse coding complete
On May 19, 2010, the New York Civil Liberties Union filed this putative class action suit on behalf of two male New York City residents who were allegedly stopped and frisked without reasonable suspicion or probable cause. The plaintiffs sued in New York State Court and alleged numerous violations of New York law, as well as violations of the First, Fourth, and Fifth Amendments of the U.S. Constitution. They sued under state law and 42 U.S.C. § 1983.
According to the complaint, Plaintiffs, both under the age of 40 and without criminal records, were stopped, questioned, searched, arrested, and given summonses that were later dismissed. Nevertheless, the NYPD kept their contact information in a massive stop-and-frisk database. The NYPD stored the information of all people stopped and frisked, refusing to seal misdemeanor and felony records. NYPD was also collecting information of individuals who were neither arrested nor summoned, and of those whose arrests and summonses were dropped. This database served as the index for investigations later carried about by the NYPD. 80% of people stopped and frisked were Black or Latino.
Plaintiffs sought declaratory judgments and an injunction requiring defendants to seal all records. On June 24, 2011, Justice Barbara Jaffe issued an order that granted the defendant's motion to dismiss. 932 N.Y.S.2d 761. {explain basis for decision and then the subsequent appeal which reversed, from the Dec, 20, 2012 order}
The parties settled in July 2013. Under the settlement, New York City paid $10,000 for all the claims that were or could have been raised by any plaintiffs in this action - including all costs, expenses, and attorney fees, and agreed to remove all information establishing the identity of individuals who were stopped, frisked, or questioned. The settlement also required the NYPD to cease entering such identifying information into the database. The City issued a written directive barring further entries into the database, and that directive was provided to the NYCLU under the terms of the settlement.
The court did not retain jurisdiction over the matter; the case was dismissed on the same day as the settlement was entered.
Summary Authors
Nili Blanck (3/17/2018)
Catterson, James M. Jr. (New York)
DeGrasse, Leland G. (New York)
Bell, Alyssa (New York)
Dunn, Christopher (New York)
Cardozo, Michael A. (New York)
Last updated Aug. 30, 2023, 1:47 p.m.
Docket sheet not available via the Clearinghouse.State / Territory: New York
Case Type(s):
Special Collection(s):
Key Dates
Filing Date: May 19, 2010
Closing Date: 2013
Case Ongoing: No
Plaintiffs
Plaintiff Description:
Putative class action suit filed on behalf of two New York City residents who have been stopped, questioned, searched, arrested, and given sumonses that were dismissed, despite their personal information being stored on an NYPD database that functions as an index for investigations. Both are men of color, under the age of 40, with no criminal history.
Plaintiff Type(s):
Non-profit NON-religious organization
Attorney Organizations:
Public Interest Lawyer: Yes
Filed Pro Se: No
Class Action Sought: Yes
Class Action Outcome: Denied
Defendants
City of New York (New York), City
New York Police Department commissioner , City
Defendant Type(s):
Case Details
Causes of Action:
Constitutional Clause(s):
Unreasonable search and seizure
Available Documents:
Injunctive (or Injunctive-like) Relief
Outcome
Prevailing Party: Plaintiff
Nature of Relief:
Injunction / Injunctive-like Settlement
Source of Relief:
Form of Settlement:
Court Approved Settlement or Consent Decree
Content of Injunction:
Implement complaint/dispute resolution process
Amount Defendant Pays: 10,000
Order Duration: 2013 - None
Issues
General/Misc.:
Discrimination Area:
Discrimination Basis:
Affected National Origin/Ethnicity(s):
Affected Race(s):