S.T.O.P., Quinn Emanuel Sue NYPD For Systematically Hiding Public Records

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View this email in your browser For Immediate Release S.T.O.P., Quinn Emanuel Sue NYPD For Systematically Hiding Public Records The first ‘pattern and practice’ FOIL lawsuit in 10 years found delays in 42,000 NYPD responses. (New York, NY, 3/22/23) - Today, the Surveillance Technology Oversight Project (S.T.O.P.) and Quinn, Emanuel, Urquhart & Sullivan, LLP announced their lawsuit alleging that NYPD systematically hides public records from the public. The lawsuit, which was filed in New York State Supreme Court in Manhattan, claims the NYPD engages in a pattern and practice of unlawfully refusing to respond to Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) requests, citing NYPD delays in 42,000 requests over the past four years. The lawsuit alleges that in 2019, the NYPD claimed more than 34 years’ worth of FOIL extensions, but by 2021 the number grew to more than 50 years’ worth of delays. Unlike routine FOIL lawsuits about individual document requests, this lawsuit challenges the NYPD’s noncompliance with FOIL more broadly, seeking protections to ensure that the NYPD properly responds to all future FOIL requests. SEE: NYSCEF - Surveillance Technology Oversight Project v. New York City Police Department https://iapps.courts.state.ny.us/nyscef/DocumentList?docketId=6tqUZW1f_PLUS_3m4Ry/PjtXE0A==&display=all&courtType=New%20York%20County%20Supreme%20Court&resultsPageNum=1 Graphic – Graph of NYPD FOIL Delays “NYPD’s extended delays and boilerplate responses to requests for public records show clear disdain for the law,” said Surveillance Technology Oversight Project Legal Director David Siffert. “The Freedom of Information Law was specifically designed to give New Yorkers a presumptive right to all government records. The activities of NYPD, including their routine surveillance of New Yorkers, is among the core types of information the law guarantees for public access. If NYPD has nothing to hide, they should have no problem sharing records that should already be public.”  “We look forward to litigating this important issue to ensure that NYPD adheres to the law and provides timely disclosures under FOIL,” said Quinn, Emanuel, Urquhart & Sullivan, LLP Partner Sami Rashid. In November, S.T.O.P. and the Legal Aid Society condemned the NYPD’s purchase of nearly $3 billion in secret surveillance equipment that had previously been hidden from the public. The contracts disclosed were previously hidden under the Special Expenses program, a controversial secrecy agreement that was terminated in 2020 in response to passage of the Public Oversight of Surveillance Technology (POST) Act, but remain heavily redacted. In August 2022, a New York Supreme Court judge ordered NYPD to hand over up to 2,700 documents related to its use of surveillance technology on Black Lives Matter protesters after S.T.O.P. and Amnesty International filed a lawsuit against NYPD demanding the records. NYPD has yet to produce any documents in response to the order. SEE: Press Release - S.T.O.P., Legal Aid Society Reveal Nearly $3 Billion In Secret NYPD Surveillance Contracts https://www.stopspying.org/latest-news/2022/11/14/stop-legal-aid-society-reveal-nearly-3-billion-in-secret-nypd-surveillance-contracts Cyberscoop - Amnesty sues NYPD, seeking details about facial recognition technology and arrest data https://cyberscoop.com/amnesty-international-nypd-facial-recognition-blm/ The Surveillance Technology Oversight Project is a non-profit advocacy organization and legal services provider. S.T.O.P. litigates and advocates for privacy, fighting excessive local and state-level surveillance. Our work highlights the discriminatory impact of surveillance on Muslim Americans, immigrants, and communities of color. -- END -- CONTACT: S.T.O.P. Executive Director Albert Fox Cahn Copyright © 2021 Surveillance Technology Oversight Project, All rights reserved. Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.