NYCLU says database with names, addresses of people stopped and frisked is illegal, sues NYPD

NYCLU: Names in stop and frisk database illegal

NEW YORK — The New York Civil Liberties Union says a database with the names and addresses of hundreds of thousands of people stopped, questioned and frisked by police is illegal.

The NYCLU says state law requires records relating to a summons or an arrest be sealed unless the person is convicted or pleads guilty to a crime. It sued the New York Police Department on Wednesday in state Supreme Court in Manhattan on behalf of people stopped. It wants their personal information sealed.

The database grew from a 2001 law requiring the NYPD to give lawmakers quarterly information on people it stops. Last year it was more than 575,000 people.

Police use the database to investigate crime. Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly says he hasn’t seen the lawsuit but reiterates the importance of the database.