New York City leaders considering reining in the department's stop-and-frisk policy amid criticism from civil liberties groups have looked to Philadelphia for a possible model.
The Philadelphia Police Department, following a 2010 class-action lawsuit from civil-rights lawyers, began controlling the field stops. The move may have come at a price, as the city's homicide rate has steadily climbed since 2010.
As of late Tuesday, 189 people had been slain in the city, compared with 169 at the same time in 2011. In most cases, both victims and perpetrators have been African-American or Hispanic men, reports the New York Times.
"I think we have to face some realities," Police Commissioner Charles H. Ramsey told The Times. "We certainly do not want to be stopping people without the reasonable suspicion that we need to conduct a stop. But just because someone is complaining and they want to play the race card doesn't mean it's an inappropriate stop."
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