Pittsburgh City Council considering new stop-and-frisk policy

PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh City Council is considering a new stop-and-frisk policy that would require police to document the reason they’re stopping and searching a person without a warrant.

City councilman Rev. Ricky Burgess said the goal of this new policy is to help reduce racial profiling because he said 70% of all stop-and-frisks in the city are used on black people.

“We believe by doing this, we will give greater confidence to the community that their police stop is justifiable so it’s not just a hunting expedition in African American communities,” said Burgess.

Burgess first introduced the legislation months ago. But the council delayed taking action to allow Burgess to meet with Pittsburgh police and public safety officials to discuss the proposed amendment and now they’ve reached an agreement.

“We are working with public safety at the very minimum, they can use either their body camera or the police vehicle camera to record the reason for the pedestrian stop,” said Burgess.

The city’s public safety public information officer Cara Cruz said the amendment put forward by the Pittsburgh police outlines that in any stop that does not result in an arrest, police will provide the pedestrian with a verbal explanation of why the individual was stopped, as well as a police report number that documents the reasonable suspicion, as opposed to providing immediate/on site documentation.

On Wednesday, six council members voted in favor of advancing the legislation. Meanwhile, one was absent, and two members abstained, including council president Theresa Kail Smith.

“Today I abstained because we are having a meeting with a lot of at-risk youth and we actually want to hear from them about what they need and what they feel like,” said Kail Smith. “Honestly, when I think about it, I’m more concerned about the increase in violence in the streets and I’m wondering if that’s what they need right now.”

Burgess said the policy does not eliminate stop-and-frisk entirely but rather ensures there is probable cause.

The public safety director was not available for comment on Wednesday evening. The final vote for the amendment will be next Tuesday.

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