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United States Your Rights Online

NYPD is Refusing To Comply With NYC's New Surveillance Tech Laws 48

An anonymous reader shares a report: In a new report published Thursday, the New York Office of the Inspector General for the New York Police Department (OIG-NYPD) said the New York Police Department violated the 2020 ââPublic Oversight of Surveillance Technology (POST) Act, which required the NYPD to publicly disclose surveillance technology. The POST Act was signed into law by then-New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio and required the NYPD to disclose information about its current and future surveillance technologies and how it wants to use them.

In the report, the OIG-NYPD said that NYPD was not in compliance with the POST Act orders to publish Impact and Use Policies (IUPs) for existing surveillance tech 180 days after the Act was signed and new IUPs at least 90 days before the use of any new surveillance tech. The IUPs were supposed to "describe the capabilities of surveillance technology, and include any rules, processes, and guidelines that regulate access to or use of the technology, and any prohibitions or restrictions on its use, and any potential disparate impacts," according to the report. But, the OIG-NYPD said that the 36 IUPs NYPD published after the Act was signed were general and not detailed, leaving the OIG-NYPD unable to conduct an audit and assess whether NYPD's use of surveillance devices complies with its IUPs and report any suspected violations.
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NYPD is Refusing To Comply With NYC's New Surveillance Tech Laws

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  • by rsilvergun ( 571051 ) on Friday March 31, 2023 @12:36PM (#63414482)
    I think we all know that, but it's so easy to get caught up in "Tough on Crime" scare tactics.
  • by fredrated ( 639554 ) on Friday March 31, 2023 @12:46PM (#63414510) Journal

    "Who will watch the watchers?" Apparently they don't like being watched, which makes it even more imperative.

    • by Anonymous Coward

      Latin, "Quis custodiet ipsos custodes" from Decimus Junius Juvenalis aka Juvenal

  • by test321 ( 8891681 ) on Friday March 31, 2023 @12:50PM (#63414518)

    I know nothing of how US works, but how can a public institution not obey the law of their land? In particular municipal policing which is under the mayor that signed that law. I imagined disobedience of a high official would have him removed by the mayor. Also in general the administration could require a justice injunction that would be sufficient to make them act; I expect that refusal for a public servant to obey a justice decision is a crime.

    • by aergern ( 127031 )

      It's pervasive throughout the culture in the U.S. ... "do as I say, not as I do."

    • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

      by rsoundman ( 7720072 )

      Easy! The cops have guns and know where the mayor lives.

    • by ArchieBunker ( 132337 ) on Friday March 31, 2023 @01:24PM (#63414644)

      Police are basically untouchable. They have a very strong union and lots of political boot lickers. If a DA tries to prosecute crooked cops the whole force suddenly becomes babies who threaten to stop doing their jobs. When a good cop does come forward they find themselves committed to a mental hospital as punishment. https://www.nbcnews.com/news/a... [nbcnews.com] I mean look who runs the union, https://abc7news.com/amp/joann... [abc7news.com]

    • New York and New York City have been dominated by big-government authoritarians for more than a century. The rank-and-file cops might not be all bad, but the leadership certainly is. It's why they (government and police) are fighting so hard against this and thumbing their noses at recent SCOTUS losses.

    • by znrt ( 2424692 )

      it's in the tfa. they simply failed to comply in due time and gave a silly excuse to say that they can't possibly comply, which is bullshit the city will now have to challenge and litigate, i guess.

      so, the simple answer is because they can. btw, that's not exclusive from the u.s. at all, it also happens systematically in my country which is described as a nominal democracy too.

    • Re: (Score:2, Insightful)

      by DarkOx ( 621550 )

      Because nobody really wants to deal with the problem.

      1) first it involves the police, do anything for/against/to/with the police its a political quagmire, there is so much emotion in the public around police, that its anyone's guess what side they'll take on a given incident. Basically any statement or action is a highstakes bet - it does not really cut right/left predictably either. So if you are not forced engage you don't.

      2) The police and the DA are usually pretty cozy, you would see the local DOJ act,

    • Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?

      They are the police. Who is going to make them follow the law?

      It is a local law, so not enforced by the federal/state/county authorities.

      The District Attorney could request court intervention (political suicide, the DA needs the Police) -which would result in a fine that the city pays itself? Not going to happen.

      Essentially it is an internal matter. The Office of the Inspector General issues a report that says "Hey, you are not following procedure" and the publicity from tha

  • by satsuke ( 263225 ) on Friday March 31, 2023 @12:55PM (#63414538)

    Than the NYPD leadership should be held in contempt of (State) congress until they comply

  • corruption? (Score:1, Troll)

    by Xaphiero ( 4646891 )
    So whoever passed POST is just giving criminals the police playbook - nice one again politicians
  • Comment removed (Score:4, Informative)

    by account_deleted ( 4530225 ) on Friday March 31, 2023 @01:11PM (#63414606)
    Comment removed based on user account deletion
  • With bigger guns, roll some tanks through the nyc police stations and crush some police cars
  • by Bruce66423 ( 1678196 ) on Friday March 31, 2023 @01:16PM (#63414618)

    Note that they're pretending to obey the law although their inspectorate doesn't agree that they are. So it will take a court case to determine whether they are - so delaying any ACTUAL implementation. The right solution, of course, is for the council to cut funding until they do what the inspectorate says - but that's something of a nuclear option, as, of course, the Police Department will suddenly not do basic policing.

  • Who would ever expect the police to ignore a law they found inconvenient? After all, it's their job to enforce the law.

  • when the police don't follow the law, who polices them?

  • by genixia ( 220387 ) on Friday March 31, 2023 @03:00PM (#63414918)

    It will be interesting to see how many defense lawyers start trying to get surveillance videos thrown out of evidence - and all evidence collected as a result of that surveillance.

    Think - surveillance video shows a known addict meeting with someone for a suspected drug deal. NYPD follow both through video until the dealer gets in a vehicle. They use that to climb the dealers network. The buyer gets arrested for possession.

    It that video is deemed to be illegal, not only does the buyer get off (no probable cause), but everything that it discovered about that dealer network becomes inadmissible too.

    I'm sure that no-one in the NYPD would stoop to parallel construction, right?

  • by PPH ( 736903 )

    disclose information about its current and future surveillance technologies

    Some of those technologies might be covered by non disclosure agreements. Private vendors agreements: No big deal. New York law can probably carve themselves out some immunity. Federal tech: It's possible that the NYPD or OIG (or both) could be in real hot water with the DoJ/FBI, NSA, CIA, etc. Federal power supersedes state and local laws. You think Trump's perp walk will look silly? I can't wait for NYC officials to be fitted with orange jump suits.

    Future technologies: Yeah. We're developing a pre-crime

    • by John.Banister ( 1291556 ) * on Friday March 31, 2023 @04:14PM (#63415104) Homepage
      If the law says they have to be transparent and the manufacturer requires a legal agreement to an NDI to use their stuff, the the answer is shitcan that stuff and announce you're taking bids for something without an NDI. Someone will be willing to make that sale.
      • by PPH ( 736903 )

        The apps or technology may have been in place long before the law was passed. And if the current suppliers are well established, there may be no one able to pick up the contract. Or there may be patents.

        Too many PHBs and politicians think that they are omnipotent. Until some federal agency or court steps in and raps their knuckles. The NYPD may feel secure behind such partners, knowing that the politicians will lose the battle.

  • Fire the chief immediately. Then give his replacement two weeks to follow the law. After two weeks, fire him. Keep going down the list until something gets done. Knowing New York cops, they'll catch blue flu in protest. Fire them, too.

    NYPD has been keeping that city hostage for decades. It's time to crack down on the true criminal element that is terrorizing the city.

  • If you get called for jury duty, you tell them you don't trust testimony from cops. They either don't seat you or they seat you and you refuse to convict based on cop testimony.
  • Cops breaking the law? Nobody will have a problem with people performing citizens arrests of police officers then, right?
  • Those AI augmented camera arrays from China are a little too good.
  • Criminals are an oppressed class. Free the criminals!

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