NYPD to limit force at protests after settling with civil rights groups

The New York Police Department has agreed to change its use-of-force policies in a settlement over four lawsuits stemming from the 2020 protests that followed the murder of George Floyd.

According to the settlement reached with the New York attorney general, the New York branch of the American Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU) and the Legal Aid Society, the department will stop encircling protesters en masse and vary its response depending on conditions of the protest. The NYPD also will create a new senior-level position to oversee that effort and give broader protection to journalists covering protests.

The settlement, the civil liberties groups say, is a landmark agreement that offers a new form of policing for the largest police department in the country.

“Too often peaceful protesters have been met with force that has harmed innocent New Yorkers simply trying to exercise their rights,” New York Attorney General Letitia James (D) said in a statement Tuesday. “Today’s agreement will meaningfully change how the NYPD engages with and responds to public demonstrations in New York City.”

Molly Biklen, deputy legal director of the NYCLU, said the settlement ensures that the department can’t “indiscriminately deploy” groups that have a track record of escalating force in protests. That includes the Strategic Response Group, which has been criticized for its violent force against protesters.

In summer 2020, after the police killing of Floyd, millions of demonstrators in thousands of protests across the country called for changes to the justice system and scrutiny of police policies, especially officers’ interactions with people of color. Videos from the time show police brutality across the country, activists say.

Journalists sometimes bore the brunt of that force, getting struck with batons and stripped of their cameras. In Washington, law enforcement officers fired stun grenade shells and rubber bullets into a crowd of hundreds of mostly peaceful demonstrators at Lafayette Square — a clash that was resolved in a 2022 settlement with the Justice Department. In New York City, officers clubbed nonviolent protesters several nights in a row.

In the settlement announced Tuesday, the NYPD agreed to limit when it could use force during a demonstration. During peaceful protests, the department said, it will not send units like the Strategic Response Group to interact with protesters, though if criminal activity seems possible, they could be stationed nearby.

Once authorities have probable cause for arrests, the department can send officers, including from the Strategic Response Group and other specialized units, to address only those committing crimes, according to the settlement. But the department agreed that it would not trap or encircle protesters as a whole without specific cause - a tactic known as “kettling.” They would only do that to a person or group of people who are being arrested.

If a protest gets more out of hand, and people are committing widespread acts of crime or trying to loot buildings, police are allowed to end the demonstration. The NYPD agreed that its officers must make sure everyone in the crowd can hear orders to disperse and clearly identify exit points and locations where protesting could continue. The department also said it would not deploy helicopters to intimidate crowds.

Daniel Bodah, an adjunct professor who specializes in police oversight at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, said the agreement is a step in the right direction, but he’s wary of its implementation.

“How do you manage a team that’s amped up and ready for action, but you don’t necessarily want them to take action in a way that escalates the situation?” Bodah said.

The NYPD does not have a track record of significantly disciplining officers for excessive use of force, Bodah said. He wants to see how commanding officers will coordinate in the field before he makes a final judgment on the settlement.

In the agreement, the NYPD also acknowledged that the Constitution protects the right of the media to observe and document police activity in public. The department said it would not arrest or restrict reporters who record police activity in public places.

During the racial justice protests in 2020, a number of journalists were detained while photographing police at protests. One was hit in the face by an officer with a baton while photographing police hitting a man. Another was pushed to the ground and detained overnight.

Press advocates said the recognition helps ensure independent coverage of law enforcement and journalists’ ability to hold police accountable. Police said they would not use crime scene tape to restrict the news media and would allow journalists with press badges to stay in the area even after they’ve ordered the crowd to disperse.

The NYPD also agreed to train its officers on interacting with journalists during demonstrations. Bodah said he hopes the department goes beyond training.

“It requires significant signaling within the department that this should be taken seriously,” he said, adding that disciplinary action for officers who arrest journalists could help show that leadership will not tolerate the detaining of reporters.

NYPD Commissioner Edward Caban said the protests of summer 2020, sometimes spontaneous, “presented many unique challenges for officers” who were trying to protect people’s First Amendment rights while ensuring public safety. He said in a statement that the “re-envisioned” policies for protests will better equip the department to meet that challenge.

New York Mayor Eric Adams (D) added in a statement that the agreement seeks to “balance safety with justice.”

The NYPD also agreed to the creation of an oversight board to ensure that the department is complying with the settlement.

Corey Stoughton of the Legal Aid Society lauded the move but added that her organization will hold the city and the NYPD accountable if the department does not shift its practices.

“Today’s settlement represents a novel approach to policing protests that, if implemented faithfully by the NYPD, will ensure that protesters are never again met with the sort of indiscriminate violence and retaliatory over-policing New York saw in the summer of 2020,” said Stoughton, who leads the activist firm’s efforts to address police misconduct.