On January 29, 2010, a group comprised of residents of, and visitors to, New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) residences filed a class action lawsuit against NYCHA and the City of New York. The case challenges the NYPD's practices of unlawful stops and arrests of NYCHA residents and their visitors for criminal trespass without sufficient evidence and due to their race and/or ethnicity. Many of these unconstitutional stops and arrests are the product of "vertical sweeps," an NYPD practice of stopping individuals in or around common areas of NYCHA residences without individualized suspicion. In essence, the NYPD only operates these unlawful pedestrian checkpoints in communities of color. In fact, the rate of stops and arrests for trespass in overwhelming non-white NYCHA residences is significantly higher than in surrounding areas with similar crime rates. NYCHA residences located in white or gentrifying neighborhoods display even starker rates of disparities in trespass stops and arrests.

Some of the Plaintiffs were detained or arrested by NYPD police officers in their own buildings or while trying to visit family members and friends. Other Plaintiffs are residents of NYCHA whose family members and friends are the ones being stopped and arrested while trying to visit. At the time of the stops or arrests, the individuals were not engaged in illegal activity, nor were they on NYCHA properties without authorization. Following the arrests, all of the charges were dismissed. The case alleges that the NYPD targets NYCHA residences and only implements these unlawful practices in communities of color. They charge the City of New York and NYCHA with the violation of their Constitutional rights under the 4^thand 14^thAmendments, the Civil Rights Acts of 1964 and 1968, the Fair Housing Act, the United Housing Act, and the laws of New York City and State.

PART 1 QUESTIONS

1. What is due process? Are the residents being afforded due process in this case?
2. What constitutional amendment/s is/are at issue in this case?
3. According to Michelle Alexander in The New Jim Crow, is this case likely to prevail in court?
4. Discuss probable cause versus reasonable suspicion as it relates to police action in this case.
5. What is the common name for the type of procedure used by the police in this case as well as in general practice and what gives the police the right to use it?
6. Name the sources of laws. What is the supremacy clause?
7. What is mass incarceration and what led to it in America?
8. What is the war on drugs and how did it evolve into the war on crime? Who is the target or enemy in the war?
9. List 3 rights or privileges that convicted criminals no longer enjoy even after completing their sentences.
10. What is white supremacy?
11. What is a caste system?
12. When and where was the first mass school shooting?

PART 2 QUESTIONS

Summarize the "American Violet movie"

Summarize the "Double Jeopardy Movie"