Federal Court Finds NYPD Stop-and-Frisk Unconstitutionally Targeted Black and Latino Men

On August 12, 2013, Federal Judge Shira Scheindlin ruled in Floyd v. City of New York that the NYPD's stop-and-frisk program was unconstitutional, finding it violated the Fourth and Fourteenth Amendments by disproportionately targeting Black and Latino men. At its peak in 2011, the NYPD made 685,724 stops; 88% were of Black or Latino individuals, 88% of whom were found to have done nothing wrong. The ruling required reforms and an independent monitor. Mayor de Blasio ended appeals in 2013. Stops fell dramatically; crime rates did not rise, disproving the program's stated effectiveness.