On November 15, 2024, the News/Media Alliance joined the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press and 26 media organizations in an amicus brief in the New York Court of Appeals in NYP Holdings v. NYPD in support of the lower court’s holding that the repeal of New York Civil Rights Law Section 50-a allows for access to police personnel records regardless of when those records were made.
The brief argues that Section 50-a was repealed in the wake of police violence against citizens with the intention for police personnel records from prior to June 2020 to be available for the public view to ensure that police are held accountable for any and all misconduct. Access to records prior to 2020 allows journalists and non-profits interested in compiling police personnel data to have a complete and accurate picture of complaints against the police. Expanded access to police disciplinary records also ensures that journalists can fulfill their duty to the public to report newsworthy information about government activities, particularly complaints against the police in the wake of recent police brutality. The Alliance joined an amicus brief in a similar case in the Court of Appeals of New York earlier this year.
Caroline Reed is a Law Clerk at the News/Media Alliance.
