Republican vice presidential nominee Gov. Mike Pence unambiguously endorsed stop-and-frisk policies, saying a Trump-Pence administration would encourage its implementation around the country.
“Stop-and-frisk literally saved lives in New York City when it was implemented, and it’s been implemented in cities around the country,” Pence told Chris Wallace on “Fox News Sunday.”
“It’s on a sound constitutional footing,” he added. “This gives law enforcement officers the opportunity, with probable cause, to be able to stop and question individuals that they think may be involved or about to be involved in criminal activity.”
He also acknowledged that a federal district court in New York had previously determined such stops were unconstitutional. The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals later issued a blunt critique of the judge who issued the ruling in the case, claiming her biases and whims were on full display in the 195-page decision. Though she was removed from the case, the 2nd Circuit panel later hedged its chastisement. (RELATED: Justice Department Charges Baltimore Cops With Racism)
The comments echo remarks made by Pence’s running mate, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, at a forum with black voters and former wrestling promoter turned MAGA maestro Don King. Trump said that robust, nation-wide use of stop-and-frisk would effectively rebut crime and urban decay.
“One of the things I’d do is, I would do stop-and-frisk,” he said. “I think you have to. We did it in New York, it worked incredibly well and you have to be proactive.”
Democrat nominee Hillary Clinton has expressed misgivings about the tactic, which critics say disproportionately targets minorities.
“I do think the evidence people use to justify stop-and-frisk doesn’t hold up under scrutiny,” she said in April.
Last month, a U.S. Department of Justice probe of the Baltimore Police Department found that nearly half of BPD’s 300,000 pedestrian stops between 2010 and 2015 occurred in two, majority-black districts. Statistics suggest a black male continuously residing in or frequenting the district would have been stopped at least 10 times during this period. Seven men reported they had been stopped over 30 times.
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