The Brian Lehrer Show The NYPD Gang Database
May 13, 2025
Babe Howell, a CUNY Law professor focusing on the impact of gang policing on marginalized communities, joins Peter Moskos, a former police officer and author, to dissect the NYPD's controversial gang database. They discuss allegations of racial discrimination and its effect on Black and Latino communities. The conversation dives into the database's flaws, including biases in data collection and the inaccuracies in crime statistics. They advocate for reform and community engagement to tackle gang violence more effectively.
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Role of Gang Database in Policing
- The NYPD gang database facilitates internal communication and identification of gang-related violence across precincts.
- It helps quickly identify suspects in shootings and prevent retaliatory violence through information sharing.
Gang Database Misuses and Risks
- The gang database targets largely Black and Latino individuals based on non-criminal criteria like social media posts and associations.
- It functions without notice, review, or due process, putting many innocent people at risk of discrimination.
Database Reflects Gun Violence Realities
- The database primarily includes individuals involved in gun violence, reflecting racial disparities in victims and shooters.
- Proposed legislation threatens to abolish all future centralized databases, potentially limiting police efficiency.
