By Bruce Golding
The New York Post
NEW YORK — The NYPD’s recently retired chief of department defended its controversial stop-and-frisk program yesterday, testifying that the huge spike in stops during recent years had made the city much safer.
Former four-star Chief Joseph Esposito acknowledged a sevenfold increase in stops between 2004 and 2011, when the annual number jumped from about 97,000 to more than 685,000, but insisted it led to a big drop in crime.
During later questioning by city lawyer Heidi Grossman, Esposito noted that “a lot of guns” had been seized through stop-and-frisk, helping push the number of city shootings to “record lows.” Esposito, who retired last month, also said he believed the program had prevented countless crimes from occurring.
Full Story: Stop-frisks worth crime drop: brass