The NYPD: A Resource Page

After repeated calls from civil liberties groups to install a mechanism for monitoring the New York Police Department, the New York City Council passed a bill establishing an inspector general for the department in June 2013. Despite a veto from then-Mayor Bloomberg and subsequent override by the City Council, Philip Eure was named as the first-ever Inspector General for the NYPD. He officially began his job as IG in May 2014.

The Brennan Center applauds the creation of Inspector General for the NYPD, based on a proposal issued by the Brennan Center in 2012, as a victory for all New Yorkers and continues to follow NYPD activity, such as their Muslim surveillance program, to ensure that all New Yorkers are treated fairly in the department’s effort to keep the city safe.

Below are fact sheets, op-eds, blog posts, and press coverage related to the monitoring and oversight of our nation’s largest police force.

Publications | Testimony | Lawsuit | Opinion | Commentary | Press Releases | Media Round-Up

Publications:

• NYPD Surveillance Technology Resource (October 7, 2019)
• NYPD Predictive Policing Documents (July 12, 2019)
• NYPD Inspector General Bill: A Fact Sheet (May 28, 2013)
• NYPD Inspector General:  Fact v. Fiction (March 28, 2013)
• A Proposal for an NYPD Inspector General (October 9, 2012)
• Unchecked NYPD Operations in Need of Oversight (October 6, 2011).

Testimony:

• Testimony Before the New York City Council Committee on Technology on Oversight of Local Law 49 & Intros. 1447 and 1806 (Laura Hecht-Felella, January 22, 2020)
• Testimony Before the New York City Council Committee on Public Safety on Intro. 1136–2018: Requiring the NYPD to Issue Public Reports on the the Department’s Use of Body-worn Cameras (Laura Hecht-Felella, November 18, 2019)
• Testimony Before the New York City Automated Decision Systems Task Force (Angel Diaz, May 30, 2019)
• Testimony on Int. 1696, Relating to the Disclosure of Source Code by Agencies Engaged in Policing and Other Services (Rachel Levinson-Waldman, October 16, 2017)
• Testimony in Support of NYPD Muslim Surveillance Lawsuit Settlements (Faiza Patel, Michael Price, April 6, 2016)
• Testimony to New York City Council on Expanding the NYPD’s Body-Worn Camera Program (Michael Price, June 29, 2015)
• Letter to New York City Council in Support of Oversight for NYPD (Frederick A. O. (“Fritz”) Schwarz, Jr., Victor A. Kovner, Peter L. Zimroth, March 28, 2013)
• Testimony Before New York City Council Public Safety Committee Hearing on Community Safety Act (Faiza Patel, October 10, 2012)
• Testimony for Hearing on Ending Racial Profiling in America (Faiza Patel, Elizabeth Goitein, April 17, 2012).

Lawsuits:

• Brennan Center for Justice v. New York Police Department (May 19, 2017)
• NYPD Agrees to Settle Muslim Surveillance Cases, Reform Policy (January 7, 2016)
• Grabell v. New York Police Department (November 2, 2015)
• Abdur Rashid v. New York City Police Department (August 5, 2015)
• Hassan et al. v. City of New York (July 10, 2014)
• Lawsuit Alleges NYPD Surveillance of Muslims is Discriminatory (June 18, 2013).

Opinion:

• Expose NYPD Surveillance: The Public has a Right to Know Whether Its Constitutional Rights are Being Abridged (Faiza Patel, Angel Diaz, New York Daily News, March 18, 2019)
• Hold Private Police Partners Accountable, Too: For-Profit Companies are Making Millions with Special Access to NYPD Information (Angel Diaz, Rachel Levinson-Waldman, New York Daily News, October 26, 2018)
• Palantir Contract Dispute Exposes NYPD’s Lack of Transparency (Emily Hockett, Michael Price, Just Security, July 20, 2017)
• Keeping Eyes on NYPD Surveillance: Time for the City Council to Increase Scrutiny of Stingrays and Other Technology (Faiza Patel, Michael Price, New York Daily News, March 1, 2017)
• When the Police Target Black Twitter (Andrew Lindsay, Ozy, August 22, 2016)
• Can You Really Fight Terrorism with a Video Game? (Michael Price, Daily Dot, February 18, 2016)
• Settlement of NYPD Muslim Surveillance Lawsuits: A Platform for Better Oversight (Faiza Patel, Michael Price, Just Security, January 15, 2016)
• Muslims and American Fear (Faiza Patel, New York Daily News, October 25, 2015)
• What the Third Circuit Said in Hassan v. City of New York (Faiza Patel, Just Security, October 14, 2015)
• How the NYPD Became George Orwell’s Worst Nightmare (Rachel Levinson-Waldman, Salon, May 12, 2015)
• NYPD vs. Muslims: The Bias Continues (Faiza Patel, Michael Price, New York Daily News, June 23, 2014)
• NYPD Must Ditch Discriminatory Muslim Surveillance Program For Its Own Good (Faiza Patel, Al Jazeera America, October 30, 2013)
• The NYPD Must Stop all Racial and Religious Profiling (Michael Price, MSNBC, August 16, 2013)
• What Is the CIA Teaching the NYPD? (Faiza Patel, Daniel Michelson-Horowitz, Defense One, August 15, 2013)
• An Inspector General for the Police: An Assurance of Constitutional Safeguards (Faiza Patel, New York Times’ Room for Debate, April 9, 2013)
• Fixing the NYPD’s LGBT Problem (Amos Toh, The Advocate, April 9, 2013)
• Oversight Will Help, Not Hurt, the NYPD (Frederick A. O. (“Fritz”) Schwarz, Jr., Victor A. Kovner, New York Daily News, March 28, 2013)
• NYPD Muslim Spying Operation Takes 'Security’ to an Unjustified Extreme (Faiza Patel, Amos Toh, The Guardian, February 6, 2013)
• Religious Profiling:  An Unwelcome Guest (Elizabeth (Liza) Goitein, Faiza Patel, The Hill’s Congress Blog, April 17, 2012)
• Surveillance of American Muslims: A Tale of Three Cities (Faiza Patel, Michael Price, Al Jazeera, April 12, 2012)
• The NYPD Needs Policing (Faiza Patel and Elizabeth (Liza) Goitein, The New York Times, January 30, 2012)
• NYPD Goes Too Far in Monitoring Muslims (Faiza Patel, New York Daily News, October 14, 2011).


 

Commentary:

• Oversight of Face Recognition Is Needed to Avoid New Era of ‘Digital Stop and Frisk’ (Angel Diaz, May 31, 2019)
• When a Facebook Like Lands You in Jail (Sara Robinson, July 6, 2018)
• Court: Public Deserves to Know How NYPD Uses Predictive Policing Software (Rachel Levinson-Waldman, Erica Posey, January 26, 2018)
• Predictive Policing Goes to Court  (Rachel Levinson-Waldman, Erica Posey, September 5, 2017)
• Palantir Contract Dispute Exposes NYPD’s Lack of Transparency (Michael Price, Emily Hockett, July 20, 2017)
• POST Act Hearing Round-Up (Michael Price, June 21, 2017)
• ICE Agents Are Using Battlefield Surveillance Technology to Snoop on Cell Phones (Michael Price, June 14, 2017)
• Keeping Eyes on NYPD Surveillance (Faiza Patel and Michael Price, June 13, 2017)
• New York City is Making Its Citizens Safer By Overseeing Police Technology (Michael Price, April 3, 2017)
• NYPD Muslim Surveillance Settlement a Victory for New Yorkers, but Vigilance Still Needed (Michael Price, March 22, 2017)
• Fact Check: The Post Act & National Security (Michael Price, March 6, 2017)
• The NYPD Targeted Muslims in Over 95-Percent of Investigations That Broke Surveillance Rules (Michael Price, September 23, 2016)
• Brennan Center Comments on NYPD Proposed Policy for Body-Worn Cameras (August 31, 2016)
• Police Body Camera Policies: Retention and Release (August 3, 2016)
• Activists on Film: Police Body Cameras and the First Amendments (Brynne O’Neal, June 20, 2016)
• What the Third Circuit Said in Hassan v. City of New York (Faiza Patel, October 14, 2015)
• NYPD Targeting of New York Muslims Continues (Meghan Koushik, August 20, 2014)
• Muslims Push Back Against NYPD Surveillance (Faiza Patel, Michael Price, June 24, 2013)
• Independent Oversight Needed to Curb NYPD Stop and Frisk Abuse, Experts Say (Shannon Parker, May 30, 2013)
• Surveillance Should Be Top Priority for New NYPD Inspector General (Michael Price, Megan Graham, May 27, 2014)
• Improving LGBT Police Relations Through an NYPD Inspector General (Amos Toh, April 2, 2013)
• Another Call for NYPD Oversight (Erik Opsal, February 22, 2012)
• The NYPD: Making the FBI Look Good (Faiza Patel, Andrew Sullivan, December 1, 2011)
• Lawyers Take NYPD to Court (Faiza Patel, October 4, 2011)


 

Press Releases:

• Inspector General Report: NYPD Violated Rules on Surveillance (August 23, 2016)
• Federal Appeals Court Says Suit Challenging NYPD Surveillance Can Continue (October 13, 2015)
• NYPD Announces End of Muslim Demographics Unit (April 15, 2014)
• The Brennan Center Welcomes de Blasio Administration’s Pick for NYPD Inspector General (March 28, 2014)
• Mayor de Blasio Takes First Step in Reforming Stop-and-Frisk Program (January 30, 2014)
• Bratton Has Opportunity to Repair Community Relations as NYPD Commissioner (December 5, 2013)
• Brennan Center Applauds City Council for Overriding Mayor’s Veto on NYPD Inspector General Bill (August 22, 2013)
• Brennan Center: Monitor Would Work in Tandem with Inspector General (August 12, 2013)
• Brennan Center Applauds Passage of Bill to Create Inspector General for NYPD (June 27, 2013)
• Statement on Lawsuit vs. NYPD on Illegal Surveillance of Muslim Americans (February 4, 2013)
• New Proposal Calls for the Creation of an Inspector General for the NYPD (October 9, 2012)
• Latest Surveillance Allegations Show Need for NYPD Oversight (February 22, 2012)
• City Council Members, Civil Rights Advocates Press Conference Puts Spotlight on NYPD Operations (October 6, 2011)
• Brennan Center, Muslim Advocates, AALDEF Request Intelligence Records (September 21, 2011)


 

Media Round-Up:

• Years After Protests, NYPD Retains Photos of Black Lives Matter Activists (George Joseph, The Appeal, January 17, 2019)
• IBM Used NYPD Surveillance Footage to Develop Technology That Lets Police Search by Skin Color (George Joseph, Kenneth Lipp, The Intercept, September 6, 2018)
• NYPD Attempts to Block Surveillance Transparency Law with Misinformation (Ali Winston, The Intercept, July 7, 2017)
• NYPD Leaders to Fight Proposal on Disclosing Police Surveillance Info at Hearing (John Annese, New York Daily News, June 13, 2017)
• NYPD Officers Accessed Black Lives Matter Activists’ Texts Documents Show (George Joseph, The Guardian, April 4, 2017)
• A City Council Bill Wants to Force the NYPD to Be More Transparent About Surveillance (Mark Chiusano, AM NY, March 2, 2017)
• NYPD Blasted Over Refusal to Disclose ‘Predictive’ Data (Barbara Ross, New York Daily News, December 17, 2016)
• Lessons from a discredited NYPD report (Mark Chiusano, AM NY, January 11, 2016)
• Brooklyn College Students: NYPD Illegally Spied on Us & Lied About It (Aviva Stahl, The Gothamist, January 5, 2016)
• US Court: Muslims Can Sue NYPD Over Mass Surveillance (Dien Luong, Al Jazeera, October 27, 2015)
• Judge Cites Federal Precedent to Shield NYPD Surveillance (Colby Hamilton, Capital September 24, 2014) 
• To Fight Terrorism: Collaborate – Up to a Point (Leonard Levitt, NYPD Confidential, July 14, 2014)
• NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton Disbands Unit Responsible for Spying on Muslim Communities (Tina Moore, New York Daily News, April 16, 2014) 
• NYPD (Finally) Gets Independent Oversight (Carla Murphy, ColorLines, March 28, 2014)
• DC’s Philip Eure Appointed NYPD Inspector General (Celeste Katz, New York Daily News, March 28, 2014)
• NYPD Inspector General Named  (NY1, March 28, 2014)
• NYPD’s Ray Kelly Defends Controversial Policing Practices in Appeal to Public  (Ryan Devereaux, The Guardian, July 24, 2013)
• An Inspector General for the Police: An Assurance of Constitutional Safeguards (Various Writers Featured, The New York Times, April 9, 2013)
• I.G. for NYPD Wins Support from 3 Former Corporation Counsels (Andrew Keshner, The New York Law Journal, April 2, 2013)
• NYC Mayoral Hopeful Chris Quinn Touts Support for Her Backing of NYPD Inspector General (Celeste Katz, New York Daily News, March 28, 2013)
• What Would a Police Inspector General Mean for the City? A Policy Brief (Kamelia Kilawan, Cristian Salazarm, Gotham Gazette, March 26, 2013)
• Mayoral Candidates Criticizing NYPD On Stop and Frisk Punt on Muslim Surveillance (Matt Sledge, Huffington Post, February 12, 2013)
• Deputy commissioner calls proposed inspector general for NYPD 'wasteful’ (Cassandra Garrison, Metro NY, December 3, 2012)
• NYPD Oversight, Independent Inspector General Eyed at Panel Discussion at John Jay College of Criminal Justice (Jennifer Peltz, Huffington Post, October 24, 2012)