The Legal Aid Society, in response to data published today by the New York City Police Department on “COVID-19 related” arrests, condemned the Department for its racially discriminatory enforcement of social distancing requirements which has so far overwhelmingly impacted New Yorkers of color, as reported by AM New York.

LAS also called for the release of other specific data and the NYPD’s internal guidance to officers on social distancing enforcement

“The release of this data is in no way responsive to demands from elected officials and community leaders for the NYPD to be more transparent about how it is policing social distancing requirements, said Corey Stoughton, Attorney-in-Charge of the Special Litigation Unit with the Criminal Defense Practice at The Legal Aid Society.

“The NYPD’s definition of ‘COVID-related’ in this data set is meaningless. Most importantly, it sheds no light on the critical question of how the NYPD can explain and begin to address its pattern of racially discriminatory enforcement of social distancing requirements and the startling examples of police misconduct revealed in recent days,” she continued.