Back in August, U.S. District Court judge Shira Scheindlin ruled stop-and-frisk unconstitutional and ordered the NYPD to reform the practice. However, the changes Scheindlin called for were placed on hold in October, when, in a surprise move, an appellate panel of three federal judges removed her from the case over questions about her partiality. New York City’s lawyers are currently scheduled to argue against Scheindlin’s verdict in an appeals court this March, but Bill de Blasio has said he will tell them to abandon the effort once he becomes mayor. So, earlier this month, the city’s Michael Bloomberg–ruled legal team filed a motion to have Scheindlin’s stop-and-frisk decision tossed out now. Today, that request was rejected by the same judges who blocked Scheindlin’s ruling, effectively eliminating the possibility that the verdict will be overturned. Somewhere in this city, Bloomberg and Ray Kelly are using swear words.
