Milbank, serving as pro bono counsel for non-profit civil rights group New York Lawyers for the Public Interest (NYLPI), helped secure a landmark ruling against the New York Police Department (NYPD) over access to the unredacted body-worn camera (BWC) footage from the fatal shooting of Miguel Richards, a college student experiencing a mental health crisis. The New York State Supreme Court ruled on June 13 that under New York’s Freedom of Information Law (FOIL), the NYPD is required to turn over the footage and must do so within 30 days.
This ruling follows the lawsuit filed by Milbank and NYLPI against the NYPD on July 19, 2018, asserting the right of NYLPI and the public to the unedited footage of the September 6, 2017 fatal encounter. On the day of the fatal incident, NYPD officers conducted a wellness check on Mr. Richards which resulted in a 15-minute standoff, during which Mr. Richards stood silent and motionless with a knife in one hand and what turned out to be a toy gun in the other hand. Mr. Richards, who was experiencing a mental health crisis, was eventually shot sixteen times, marking the first fatal shooting involving NYPD officers to be captured on body cameras since the department’s court-ordered BWC pilot program began five months prior. The NYPD subsequently released incomplete and heavily redacted BWC footage from the shooting, citing a series of FOIL exemptions.
The Milbank team involved in this case included Litigation partner Jed Schwartz with associates Benjamin Reed and Marion Burke.
Mr. Reed, who argued the case, said: “We are thrilled that the court has found that the NYPD has an obligation under New York’s Freedom of Information Law to release the unedited body camera footage from this devastating incident. This is a win for the integrity of FOIL, and for the public, which is entitled to transparency and accountability. Our hope is that the full, unedited footage will shed light on this incident and provide guidance on how similar incidents can be prevented in the future.”
Ms. Burke added: “I learned so much working with Jed, Ben, and the team at NYLPI—teaming up with a non-profit civil rights group gave me insight into how litigation can be used as a tool to advance the interests of justice.”
