In February 1999, the Amadou Diallo shooting brought increased attention to the issue of police brutality. NYPD records showed that in 1997 and 1998, 35,000 out of 45,000 stop-and-frisks did not result in an arrest. The statistics showed that 16 African Americans were stopped for every arrest made.
The settlement required that the NYPD maintain a written anti-racial-profiling policy that complies with the U.S. and New York State Constitutions and is binding on all NYPD officers. The policy requires that officers who engage in stop-and-frisks be audited, and for their supervisors to determine whether, and to what extent, the act was due to reasonable suspicion, and whether it was being documented.
The audits were then to be given to the Center for Constitutional Rights on a quarterly basis. Furthermore, the NYPD was required to engage in public education efforts, which included joint public meetings with class members and representatives on its racial profiling policy, and workshops at approximately 50 highs on a student's rights when being frisked.[2]