By Emily Roche

In a recent study by NYU sociologist Amanda Geller, individuals who were targeted for Terry stops, also known as “stop and frisk” stops, were significantly more likely to experience symptoms of trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder than those who were not.

Stop and frisk is a controversial policy that allows police offers to detain, question, and frisk search any individual who appears to have just committed a crime, be in the process of committing a crime, or be about to engage in criminal activity. More than four million of these stops were made between 2004 and 2012, according to the NYPD. But there’s more than well-intentioned sleuthing that goes into marking the demographics who bear the brunt of the majority of Terry stops. According to the New York Civil Liberties Union, of the 191,558 individuals targeted for these searches in 2013, 56 percent were black and 29 percent were Latino. Only 11 percent were white. On top of that, an astounding 88 percent of people who were stopped were completely innocent.

Geller’s study reports that the Terry stops are “often harsh encounters in which physical violence, racial/ethnic degradation, and homophobia are commonplace, raising the potential for adverse mental health effects.” It’s not hard to see how the nature of these stops can increase anxiety in a populace already feeling overly scrutinized and targeted just for walking down the street.

Racial profiling by the NYPD and other cities’ police forces is unfortunately not a new trend, but with the (still ongoing, by the way) protests in Ferguson and the high-profile trial for the murder of Trayvon Martin, white people who are generally not racially targeted by police violence are beginning to realize how much racial profiling effects the decisions of officers who are supposed to be protecting all citizens. For example, the NYCLU reports that one predominantly black precinct in Staten Island reported 721 stop and frisk encounters — and that was just in the first quarter of 2014. For the sake of comparison, the precinct that includes NYU and The New School came in with an underwhelming 30 stops in the same time period. These numbers reflect the systematic bias that results in atrocities like the murder of 43-year-old father-of-six Eric Garner, who was put in a chokehold and subsequently killed by police officers in Staten Island last summer. No charges have been pressed against his killers.

Although most Terry stops don’t result in murder, Geller’s study reports that “half of recorded stops involve the physical contact of a frisk,” and that “approximately 20 percent” result in the “use of force.” These numbers are telling, considering that only 12 percent of people stopped are actually guilty of having committed a crime or having intent to commit any kind of crime. Various accounts from people who have been stopped, including videos on Youtube, recount the harrowing experience of being stopped and harassed by a police offer who seems to have a blank check for brutality, with no threat of repercussions should they go too far.

Acknowledging that these stops increase anxiety and trauma in our population and promote racial profiling, can it be said that stop and frisk is a worthwhile procedure? Geller’s study adds that “a visible, proactive police presence can improve individual and population health through improved public safety and feelings of security…although these benefits may accrue predominantly to those not personally stopped, even youths who experience aggressive police contact may receive safety benefits along with any adverse effects.” Of course, to populations of people who will never be profiled and targeted by police, the stop and frisk procedures can seem like a proactive method of stopping crime before it happens. But those who are stopped — including many folks who are targeted based on racial and ethnic prejudices — this system leaves much to be desired.

Some places are finding ways to reduce the instances of unwarranted police attention. Rialto, California is one of a few cities that are now requiring their police officers to wear body cams while on duty. These cameras force officers to be accountable for their actions, and in Rialto, “public complaints against officers plunged 88%…and officers’ use of force fell by 60 percent,” The Guardian reports.

One thing is for certain: a justice system that leaves the population of people it’s designed to help feeling anxious and traumatized is a system that needs to be changed.

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