"Stop and Frisk", Is Judge Scheindlin on Target?

After reading several articles on Judge Shira A. Scheindlin’s verdict on the New York Police Department’s “stop and frisk” policy, there are certain conclusions that may be drawn:  

(1) The average individual would personally find it very offensive if a police officer stopped him/her on the streets of NYC under “stop and frisk”.

(2) That as much as it is a clearly offensive practice, if it substantially reduces the crime rate in NYC, this policy may be worth the inconvenience.

(3) The “stop and frisk” policy is not necessarily a racially motivated intervention.

(4) Judge Scheindlin should be elected as the new head of the ACLU, the one organization in America that definitively values our personal privacy and rights over our safety and security, making it one of the greatest weapons that terrorists have in this country.

(5) While there will always be police officers that abuse privilege, one would like to believe that the majority of police officers have the community’s best interests at heart.  Condemning police officers as generically evil, requiring civilian monitors, will prevent them from doing their job effectively.  No individual works well when someone is looking over their shoulder every minute.  Between phone videos, cameras on top of police cars, and traffic cameras, there are already sufficient devices in place to monitor police activities. 

(6) Every time a minority teenager is inadvertently killed in NYC, there is public outrage.  It doesn’t seem to matter if the teenager has a rap sheet a mile long, is carrying a gun or concealed weapon, or is in the middle of committing a crime, the police officer is condemned for use of excessive force.  Why is it that no one seems to blame the parents of the teenager for allowing him/her out of the house with a weapon in the middle of the night?  Why are parents, who have been totally remiss in their responsibilities, so easily let off the hook? 

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Perhaps the most irking of all of Judge Scheindlin’s comments are those classifying “stop and frisk” as racist.   One can make a strong argument that the greatest underlying cause of crime in NYC is poverty.  And if that be true, there may be substantially higher crime rates in certain low-income communities in NYC.  And if therein resides a certain ethnic group that dominates that area, whether it be Black, Hispanic, Italian, Orthodox Jewish, Russian, etc., should not those areas be targeted by the police as high risk areas.  And is it possible that in these areas that the “stop and frisk” policies could be very effective, particular late at night and in the early hours of the morning, when a large percentage of crimes are committed?  Is that racism or is it statistical analysis? 

The trouble with the word “racism” is that it is applied every time a minority member of NYC is shot by a police officer, even if they are guilty as hell.   Clearly there exist “racist” police officers as well as other members of our society. It is important to note that there is still racism and discrimination in the workplace; in renting apartments; in private clubs (e.g. Augusta National); and in college admissions. But sometimes, there is also “reverse racism”, where a minority individual is admitted to a college because he/she is a minority, or to a private club as a “token” member.  Our society is imperfect and that will be the case “ad infinitum”.  Al Sharpton has made a career out of using the “racist” card.  He even has his own radio show (certainly not based on talent).  Why? Because it is easier to use the word “racism” than to admit that the cause is based on one’s own negligence. 

The New York Police Department will now have to severely curtail the use of “stop and frisk” tactics, thanks to the “left wing perspective” of Judge Scheindlin.  This will allow more criminals on the streets, undoubtedly with more illegal firearms.  Perhaps, someday, in one of those great ironies of life, when Judge Shira A. Scheindlin is stalked or harassed late at night by an armed criminal, one that might have been removed from society by “stop and frisk”, she may live to regret her decision.   It would be a “just” outcome.