Jazz Hayden and the Fight Against Stop-and-Frisk

An unlikely activist's battle with the NYPD's frisky business

By Graham Rayman, Photographs by Lyric Cabral

Photo By:Lyric Cabral - The majority of New Yorkers targeted in stop-and-frisks are young black and Hispanic males. “Harlem is turning into an open-air prison, a minimum-security prison, and the people think it’s normal,” Hayden says.

Village Voice - Hayden, a longtime Harlem community activist, films stop-and-frisks and then posts the videos to the Internet as part of his Copwatch program. Hayden plans to sue the NYPD for improper stop and arrest after he was pulled over by police in December.

The 70-year-old Hayden, whose given name is Joseph, is a longtime community activist in Harlem. In a past life, he was a street hustler who served three years in prison in the late 1950s for drugs, was falsely accused in the late 1960s in a high-profile shooting of two police officers in the politically turbulent year of 1968, was convicted of money laundering in the 1970s, and served 13 years in prison from 1986 to 2000 for manslaughter after a traffic dispute turned fatal.

Hayden has spent the past four years irritating police officers by videotaping them as they stop and frisk people in Harlem in a program he calls "Copwatch." He often posts the videos on the Internet. For most of that period, he encountered little more than annoyed cops, but recently, his activities might have caught up with him.

Last summer, Hayden filmed two plainclothes officers during an evening car stop. The exchange between Hayden and the officers was contentious, even though the two motorists who were stopped were let go without charges.

At least one officer was aware of Hayden's past, because at one point, he can be heard saying: "You done selling drugs yet or what? I know your rap sheet." And then later, the tape shows, the same officer can be heard saying: "Go sell some more drugs, sir. We know your background. I know who you are."

Then, on December 2, as Hayden drove away after a meeting at Riverside Church, the same two officers stopped him, searched him, and arrested him for possession of a penknife. "We know you," one of them said.

"These guys knew who I was," Hayden says, calling it "NYPD officers taking revenge on me. . . . It was clear retaliation."

Chris Woods, a 35-year-old security guard, happened to be walking by and witnessed the police stop Hayden. "He didn't say anything offensive or abusive to the officers, but that wasn't good enough for them," Woods says. "That he was talking with them seemed to make them more furious. The whole thing shouldn't even have been a criminal matter."

What probably should have been a minor incident became 48 hours in holding cells and a felony weapons charge against the activist. Hayden's arrest has also become something of a cause in Harlem.

Among other events, Hayden's allies organized a protest at the Manhattan Supreme Court on January 19, one of his court dates. The protest was attended by elected officials and activists. The board of the radio station WBAI, where Hayden was once a producer, passed a resolution in support of him.

In 2010, the NYPD, in a campaign touted by Police Commissioner Ray Kelly as a key element in the war on crime, stopped more than 600,000 people throughout the city. From 2004 to 2009, police stopped 2.8 million people; the largest age group is males 15 to 19, following by males ages 20 to 24. Just 9 percent of the stops resulted in an arrest. And in 2011, the police were on pace for 686,000 stops—a new record.

In the 2010 Voice series "The NYPD Tapes," police supervisors in the 81st Precinct in Bedford-Stuvesant order cops to make a quota of one or two stops per tour. Police Officer Adil Polanco, who was assigned to a Bronx precinct, said similarly that there was a stop-and-frisk quota there. If those orders are typical for most precincts—and that appears to be the case from the tapes and Polanco's statements—then quotas are a key factor in fueling the rise in stops.

Even so, Kelly has said repeatedly that the stops keep people from carrying weapons, drugs, and other illicit items on the street. He said it again most recently in a December 11 affidavit filed as part of a lawsuit: "Stops serve as a deterrent to criminal activity."

He has been backed on this by Mayor Bloomberg, the New York Post and Daily News editorial pages, and commentators including the Manhattan Institute's Heather Mac Donald, who tied the stops to the crime decline and declared that the campaign "saves minorities' lives."

And yet the campaign has spawned ongoing opposition not only from elected officials and activists but also from regular New Yorkers. Last September, police stopped and handcuffed Counciman Jumaane Williams and an associate at Brooklyn's West Indian Day Parade.

Williams raised a fuss, which led police spokesman Paul Browne to claim that someone had punched a police officer during the incident. Williams called that claim a "bald-faced lie," and Browne hasn't uttered another word about it since.

But aside from public opinion, there's a major cost to the campaign in actual dollars. Over the past couple of years, the number of lawsuits filed by New Yorkers alleging improper stop-and-frisks has continued to grow. There might be some element of lawyers seeing a new area in the always-busy police-litigation business, but the rise also indicates a frustration among New Yorkers with the practice.

In the month of January alone, more than three dozen lawsuits alleging improper stop-and-frisks were filed, based on a Voice reading of the complaints. Extrapolated, that means that the city could be sued more than 400 times this year alone just on improper stops.

Read Full Story at Village Voice

NYPD strikes again, brutally beating a Bronx Teen, Jatiek Reed, 19, last week.  The incident was caught on video and is another example of a Police department that is out of control and brutalizing our communties.  Even Police Commissioner Ray Kelly who almost never admits any wrong doing on behalf of the NYPD stated that, "the video was disturbing."  The officers in the video were also stripped of their guns for the time being and put on desk duty while NYPD investigates the incident internally.  This incident and the filming of it further empasizes the importance of citizens taking out their cameras and monitoring police activity.  If this video had not come out this would just be another everyday case of the police officers word verse the victims word.  All Things Harlem urges our viewers to please film police activity in our communities. 

Watch Full Video

See more coverage of this story.

Bro. Shaka Speaking On Police Terror To Harlem Youth In The Hood

Occupy The Courts!

Bro. Shaka Shakur, a coordinator of the Peoples Survival Program in Harlem was arrested at work after a taskforce of police agents raided his apartment in the Bronx with a baseless warrant.  In the course of the raid the police also took the opportunity to violate the home of veteran Black Panther Cyril "Bullwhip" Innis under the guise of an alleged search for illegal weapons.

PRESS CONFERENCE/COURT HOUSE RALLY WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2012 9:00AM THE BRONX COUNTY CRIMINAL COURT Part B

Video of Bro. Shaka discussing his upcoming court case at a press Conference in support Joseph "Jazz" Hayden, another Harlem community leader under attack by the NYPD. January 12, 2012.

Save The Date and come out on Wednesday, February 15, 2012 as we collectively "Occupy The Bronx Courthouse" in support of those who actively fight against Police Terror by the NYPD.

Additionally, Thanks to the very successful fundraising event organized by CEMOTAP; We now only need a balance of $2,500.00 to cover the legal expenses for Bro. Shaka Shakur.

For those who were unable to attend this community fundraiser and still wish to contribute to the legal expenses needed to win this case; We ask that you please make out your check or moneyorder payable to our attorney
Michael W. Warren with a notation for the Shaka Shakur Defense Fund and to then Mail Your Support Contribution To:

Michael W. Warren, P.C.
580 Washington Avenue
Brooklyn, New York 11238

For more information contact:

Phone - 212-650-5008

Emails - peoplessurvivalprogram@aol.com, safiyanuhfoundation@yahoo.com, Panthershepcat@aol.com

Directions to Bronx Criminal Court:

215 East 161st Street (near Sherman & Sheridan Avenues) C, D or 4 train to the Yankee Stadium/161st Street Station. BX 6 or BX 13 to East 161st Street & Sheridan Avenue; the BX 1 to East 161st Street & Grand Concourse

 A Statment of Thanks and Blessings From Shaka

Click Photo for NY1 Coverage

Community members, social activists, religious and political leaders all came together outside of the Manhattan Supreme Court for a press conference in support of Joseph "Jazz" Hayden and to rally against the NYPD's racist practice known as Stop and Frisk.

Jazz was a recent victim of retaliation by the NYPD when he was arrested by the same 2 officers he filmed last summer during a Copwatch. He has been out filming police activity and Stop and Frisks in Harlem for the past 3 years and posting these videos to youtube(playlist) and allthingsharlem.com. For full story and detail behind the arrest view here - http://bit.ly/AmEj6y.

The court decided to send Jazz's case to the Grand Jury and his next court date will be on April 17, 2012. Please come out again and support him on this day. More details will follow.

All Things Harlem - Video Coverage

 JOIN US ON THE STEPS OF THE MANHATTAN SUPREME COURT   
IN SUPPORT OF HARLEM COMMUNITY ACTIVIST   
JOSEPH “JAZZ” HAYDEN

JANUARY 19, 2012
8:30AM
100 CENTRE STREET

 
 
A LONGSTANDING MONITOR OF POLICE CONDUCT AND THE RECENT VICTIM OF
AN ILLEGAL STOP AND FRISK AND RETALIATORY ARREST.
 

AND CHALLENGING  
  POLICE MISCONDUCT IN OUR
COMMUNITIES
 
Current Speakers: 

Charles Barron, City Council

King Downing, American Friends Service Committee

Liz Fink, civil rights attorney

Kassandra Frederique, Policy Associate, Drug Policy Alliance

Robert Gangi, Senior Policy Advocate, Urban Justice Center

Jazz Hayden, Campaign to End the New Jim Crow

Sarah Kunstler, civil rights attorney

Rev. Stephen Phelps, Senior Minister, The Riverside Church

Yusef Salaam, defendant in the Central Park jogger case

Chet Whye, Executive Director, Harlem4 Center for Change

Jumaane Williams, City Council

Nahal Zamani, Advocacy and Program Manager, Government Misconduct and Racial Justice, Center for Constitutional Rights

On December 2, 2011 - Joseph "Jazz" Hayden, Founder of allthingsharlem.com, was arrested by the NYPD in retaliation by 2 officers he filmed in an earlier Copwatch this summer.  

Jazz and All Things Harlem are asking for your support with his case and to fight for the right to film and report on the police activity in our communities - which have turned into police states. 

Jazz's next Court Date is January 19, 2012 at 100 Centre Street Criminal Court Part F, 9:30am  Please Come out for a Stop/Frisk and Media Rights Day of Action at the Courthouse. (More Details to Follow)

Here is a letter from Jazz detailing the incident 

 Dear Friends,

I wanted to share this story of these NYPD officers taking revenge on me.  As you might know I make it a habit of filming the many incidents of the NYPD, Stopping and Frisking people in the Harlem community.  On December 2, 2011 when I was leaving my weekly Campaign To End The New Jim Crow Working group meeting at Riverside Church I was pulled over by 2 NYPD officers.  It turned out that it was the same 2 officers I had filmed in a Copwatch, Stop and Frisk incident this summer.  

During the video below you can hear the officer's talking to me and saying that they know who I am and know my background.

At minute, 5:05 the officer can be heard saying, "You done selling drugs yet or what? I know your rap sheet."  Then again around 5:55 the officer can be heard saying, "Go Sell some more drugs Sir.  We know your background, I know who you are."

Flashback to a few weeks ago when I was driving through Harlem and these same officers pulled me over.  As they approached my car and recognized me they said, "hey we know you, you're that murderer."  I asked them why I was being stopped and they eventually said that one of my brake lights was out.  They asked me for my license and registration which I gave them and then I was asked to step out of the car.  I complied and got out of my car but told them that they had no right and no consent to search my car or myself, but that they could pat frisk me.   After I told the officers that, they asked me to go to the back of my car and stand there.  

As soon as I got to the back of my car one officer immediately ignored my statement and went right inside my car and began searching it.  After a few minutes of this illegal search the officer came out of the car and "proudly" presented a Pen Knife (a knife that can be bought at any hardware store or discount store).   I was then arrested for Felony Possession of a dangerous weapon and taken to the 32nd precinct.  Shortly after I arrived there and was being booked, they asked me if I had any medical problems and I told them about my high blood pressure.  I was then taken to Harlem hospital for a few hours where my blood pressure was measured extremely high (163 over 103).  I was kept at the hospital until it subsided and then brought back to the 32nd precinct.  This all took place on a Friday night and I ended having to stay at the 32nd precinct until late Sunday night, without food or medication, when I was finally able to see a judge downtown.  

At the court hearing the prosecution requested that I be held on a bail of 16k.  The affidavit that the NYPD filled out made no mention of my alleged brake lights being out and I wasn't charged with any traffic violations.  The officers cited in the affidavit that they saw me moving my hand on the console in my car and that was their reason for stopping me.  After I showed my legal aide lawyer the videos and work I have been doing on my CopWatch to fight against Stop and Frisk he pointed this out to the judge.  After reviewing the evidence and my record the Judge released me on my own recognizance.  

I am now scheduled for another court date on January 19, 2011.  I am asking you to come to the court and support me if you can against this NYPD injustice.  Community groups including the Campaign to End the New Jim Crow, WBAI and others will be supporting me on this day, please join them.  

Stop/Frisk and Media Rights Day of Action on January 19, 2012 at 100 Centre Street Criminal Court Part F, 9:30am

(More details to follow)

Sincerely,

Joseph “Jazz” Hayden

Email: info@allthingsharlem.com

PS: Read the Resolution passed by WBAI's Local Station Board below:

RESOLUTION PASSED  In Support of Jazz Hayden  Former WBAI producer Jazz Hayden -- a co-founder of "On the Count" -- was  stopped in Harlem for a traffic violation Friday night, December 2, 2011.  When he was pulled over, the cops said, "We know you," according to Jazz Hayden.  They were the SAME cops he filmed at a cop watch stop and frisk during the  summer: The cops then proceeded to search his car and arrest him for a pen knife. They kept him for close to 48 hours and asked for $16k bond, but the judge released him on his own recognizance.  Jazz Hayden has a January court date. The WBAI LSB respects and supports Jazz Hayden and condemns such police harassment and arrest. We invite listeners to express their solidarity with Mr. Hayden by coming to court in January, and request that WBAI cover this story.