"This report was co-authored by Issa Kohler-Hausmann ... and Jamie Fellner ..."--P. 28. "November 2012"--Table of contents page. Includes bibliographical references.
Contents:
Summary -- Recommendations. To New York City elected and law enforcement officials. Research design. Demographics of the group under study -- I. New York State marijuana laws. Marijuana arrests and use in New York City ; Marijuana arrests and public safety -- II. Findings. Arrests ; Subsequent convictions -- Conclusion -- Acknowledgements -- Methodological appendix. Study summary & New York State sealing Llaws ; Data ; Definition of the MJACD 03-04 cohort ; Criminal convictions ; Violent felony definition ; Injurious misdemeanor definition.
Summary:
"In this report, Human Rights Watch offers new data indicating that people who enter the criminal justice system with an arrest for public possession of marijuana rarely commit violent crimes in the future. Over the last 15 years, New York City police have arrested more than 500,000 people - most of them young blacks or Hispanics - on misdemeanor charges of possessing small amounts of marijuana in public view. While Mayor Michael Bloomberg and the police have said the arrests have helped reduce violent crime, they have never specified how"--Publisher's website. "Every year, New York City police arrest around 50,000 people--most of them young blacks or Hispanics--for the misdemeanor crime of possessing small amounts of marijuana in public view. New York City law enforcement and elected officials have never explained the rationale underlying why they focus so many resources on this type of misdemeanor arrest. Although some people make assertions that these arrests contribute to public safety, there has never been any empirical evidence offered in support. The disproportionate impact these arrests have on black and Hispanic city residents, as well as the fact that they consume so many scarce law enforcement and judicial resources, warrant a full, objective, and factual based explanation of this policing policy. This report analyzes the subsequent criminal histories of people who enter the New York criminal justice system with marijuana possession arrests. Based on tracking the criminal records of almost 30,000 people who had no prior criminal convictions when they were arrested for misdemeanor marijuana possession in 2003 and 2004, we find that as of June 2011, relatively few had been convicted of serious crimes: only 3.1 percent were convicted of one violent felony offense and an additional 0.4 percent had two or more violent felony convictions. Arresting and prosecuting those who commit violent crimes is a legitimate and necessary law enforcement objective. But it is not readily apparent how arresting and prosecuting 50,000 people annually for marijuana possession helps in that endeavor. If the reason is to enable the police to enter arrestees' fingerprints and other information into criminal databases so that they can identify anyone who may commit serious crimes in the future, our data indicates the police have cast too wide a net. The greater the numbers of people being arrested, and the more controversy and litigation spurred by this policing policy, the louder the absence of an official and transparent explanation becomes. Human Rights Watch calls on New York City officials to demonstrate that it has a non-discriminatory and human rights compliant policing policy in place to justify its focus on misdemeanor marijuana arrests"--Provided by publisher.
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