In a major ruling under New York’s Freedom of Information Law, the New York State Supreme Court found that the New York Police Department unjustifiably delayed release of body-worn camera footage of two police shootings of New Yorkers with mental health disabilities. New York Lawyers for the Public Interest, represented by itself and Milbank LLP, filed suit against the NYPD after the NYPD refused to provide any footage of the fatal police shooting of Kawaski Trawick on April 14, 2019, or any footage of the police shooting of Michael Cordero on March 4, 2019. Both were experiencing mental health crises. The body-worn camera footage that was eventually obtained shows the crucial need for New York City to reassess and improve its responses to individuals in crisis, including replacing police as first responders with teams of EMTs and trained peers (people with personal mental health experience).
The Court ruled that NYLPI and the public have the right to body-worn camera footage of police shootings, that the NYPD delayed release of the footage for too long, and that the NYPD must pay the legal fees of NYLPI and Milbank. The footage was finally released December 4, 2020, -- over a year and a half after Mr. Trawick was killed and NYLPI requested the footage, a full five months after the NYPD announced a new policy requiring the public release of footage within 30 days of a shooting, and nine months after the litigation was filed.
“This is a critical ruling which we hope will stanch the spate of police killings of individuals experiencing mental health crises,” said Marinda van Dalen, Senior Staff Attorney with the Disability Justice Program at New York Lawyers for the Public Interest. “This decision sends a message to the NYPD that New Yorkers are entitled to see with their own eyes what we already know: police officers should not be the first responders when people are experiencing mental health crises. The tally of police shootings of individuals with mental illness in New York City continues to be unconscionable, and it’s way past time for New York City to put in place non-police response teams citywide.”
Mr. Trawick was killed in his home 112 seconds after police arrived. Minutes before the police shot him, firefighters had let Mr. Trawick into his apartment without incident, as he had locked himself out. However, when two NYPD officers arrived, they violently escalated the situation, rather than communicate with Mr. Trawick or simply close the door to his apartment, where he was no danger to himself or anyone else. One officer tasered and then fatally shot Mr. Trawick, even as his partner repeatedly told him not to. Both officers had purportedly recently undergone training on responding to people experiencing mental health crises. Mr. Trawick was Black, the officer who shot him is white, and the second officer is Black. Neither officer took immediate steps to get emergency medical attention for Mr. Trawick as he lay dying. New York City’s Civilian Complaint Review Board has brought charges against the two officers involved in the shooting, yet the NYPD determined no discipline was in order, and the Bronx District Attorney’s office did not bring charges.
Mr. Cordero was shot in the hallway of his parents’ apartment building just seconds after the police arrived. It took the NYPD almost two years to produce body-worn camera footage of the shooting. The NYPD determined that the police shooting was justified.
“We are grateful that the Court has recognized the importance of fee-shifting in litigation to advance the public interest of transparency in government affairs,” said Milbank associate Marion Burke, who argued the fee motion. “We are hopeful that going forward the NYPD will recognize the important goals advanced by FOIL and the NYPD’s body-worn camera program—transparency, accessibility, and accountability.” This decision follows decisions in two previous successful FOIL cases brought by NYLPI in which courts also ordered the NYPD to disclose body-worn camera footage of police shootings of individuals experiencing mental health crises that had been requested under FOIL and improperly withheld. Additional information about these cases is available here.
A copy of the ruling is available here.
NYLPI was joined in filing the suit by Milbank LLP pro bono counsel Jed Schwartz, Benjamin Reed, Marion Burke, Jasper Perkins, and Marguerite O’Brien. Ruth Lowenkron and former NYPD Assistant Commissioner Stuart Parker also participated in the lawsuit for NYLPI.
About New York Lawyers for the Public Interest (NYLPI)
Founded 45 years ago by leaders of the bar, New York Lawyers for the Public Interest pursues equality and justice for all New Yorkers. NYLPI works toward a New York where all people can thrive in their communities, with quality healthcare and housing, safe jobs, good schools, and healthy neighborhoods. In NYLPI’s vision, all New Yorkers live with dignity and independence, with the resources they need to succeed. NYLPI’s community-driven approach powers its commitments to civil rights and to disability, health, immigrant, and environmental justice. NYLPI seeks lasting change through litigation, community organizing, policy advocacy, pro bono service, and education.
NYLPI has a long history of fighting for New Yorkers with disabilities since its founding, including for access to the criminal justice system. NYLPI brought and won the first case under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in 1992, enabling people with disabilities to gain access to the observation deck of the Empire State Building. Recent successes include a settlement with the New York Police Department after it transported an individual who used a wheelchair in an inaccessible van, brought him to an inaccessible police station with an inaccessible bathroom, and kept him chained to a wall for the majority of his over 36 hours in custody.
