STREET STOPS BY THE POLICE

To the Editor:

Re "Trouble With Marijuana Arrests" (editorial, Sept. 27): While
Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly's memo may mark the end of the
explosion in low-level marijuana arrests, let there be no doubt that
the broader issues related to the New York Police Department's
escalating use of stop-and-frisk remain as troublesome as ever.

We must retrain police officers to make street stops more
constitutional and less confrontational, and to identify clear
behavioral triggers for when a stop is justified. The
one-size-fits-all explanation of "furtive movement" as a justification
for the escalating stops of black and Latino New Yorkers is
unacceptable and unconstitutional.

At the same time, precinct commanders should be held accountable for
the proper execution of stops in their areas by making it a
performance measure tracked by CompStat, the computerized system that
tracks crime patterns.

By respecting all communities, and obeying the Fourth Amendment's ban
on unreasonable searches and seizures, we can be tougher on crime and
smarter on crime.

SCOTT M. STRINGER

Manhattan Borough President