Fare-Beating Arrests Plummet As Manhattan DA Limits Prosecutions

NEW YORK, NY — Arrests for fare evasion in New York City took a nosedive last month as the Manhattan District Attorney's Office prosecuted far fewer cases of the crime, new statistics show. Cops collared 622 people for skipping fares in February, less than half January's total of 1,472, according to NYPD figures provided to Patch.

The sharp drop came as Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. declined to prosecute most turnstile-jumping cases in his borough under a new policy that took effect Feb. 1. Vance, a Democrat, will only move forward with fare-evasion cases against people who pose a public safety risk, such as those with previous convictions for certain crimes, his office has said.

The NYPD brought 213 fare evasion cases to Manhattan prosecutors last month, 500 fewer than in January and roughly a third of the 652 brought in February 2017, figures from Vance's office show. Those numbers reflect cases in which fare evasion was the most serious crime alleged.

The figures suggest Vance's new policy – which has not been adopted by the city's other district attorneys – is having its intended effect. Fewer New Yorkers are being put through the criminal justice system for a petty charge which critics say is disproportionately brought against poor people of color.

"We are encouraged by the reduction in arrests," Danny Frost, a spokesman for Vance's office, said in a statement.

The drop also follows an NYPD policy change aimed at reducing fare evasion arrests. Since early Februrary, cops have been giving criminal summonses to certain turnstile jumpers rather than arresting them, said Lt. John Grimpel, a police spokesman.

The shift in Vance's policy means Manhattan prosecutors are bringing fewer turnstile-jumping cases to court, according to figures from the Legal Aid Society, one of several groups that provide defense attorneys to people who can't afford them.

Legal Aid was assigned 124 new Manhattan fare evasion cases in February, an 80 percent drop from January. On average, the group was assigned about 521 cases a month in Manhattan last year.

Last month marked the first time in at least a year that Manhattan did not lead the five boroughs in fare-beating cases, Legal Aid figures indicate. That distinction went to Brooklyn, where Legal Aid lawyers were assigned 134 new cases in February.

When cops stop someone for fare evasion, they'll make an arrest in certain circumstances, such as if the person is a repeat turnstile jumper, has an active arrest warrant or has certain prior criminal charges, police officials have said.

The most common outcome is a civil summons, essentially a $100 ticket payable to the MTA's Transit Adjudication Bureau. About 25,000 of the 33,000 people stopped for fare evasion last year got a civil summons, Police Commissioner James O'Neill said last month.

Until last month, cops would also arrest anyone caught turnstile-jumping without identification on them. Under the new policy, those offenders are released with a criminal summons if police can identify them at a precinct, Grimpel said. That kind of summons comes with a court appearance and usually a fine.

"In lieu of arrests, we’re going to make every attempt to give the person a criminal court summons instead," Grimpel said.

The number of civil summonses issued for turnstile-jumping fell last month along with arrests, though the drop was less steep. Police gave out 3,181 in February, the NYPD said, down about 23 percent from 4,140 in January. The Police Department doesn't yet have figures available for criminal fare evasion summonses because the policy change is so recent, Grimpel said.

The NYPD is continuing efforts to drive down arrests despite differences with Vance's office over which turnstile-jumpers pose a public safety risk, O'Neill has said. Mayor Bill de Blasio raised concerns about the DA's policy last month, saying it would give turnstile-jumpers a free pass to the subway.

"Whether you have money for the fare or not, cheating it isn’t fair to fellow New Yorkers," Austin Finan, a spokesman for de Blasio, said in a statement. "And while the Mayor and (O'Neill) have been clear that we’ll continue to enforce against those who jump the turnstile, we’ll also look for ways to reduce arrests while still keeping the subways safe."

Despite the changes, though, turnstile-jumping arrests will continue to hurt poor New Yorkers — especially undocumented immigrants — until the NYPD makes big changes to how it enforces the crime, said Anthony Posada, the supervising attorney of the Legal Aid Society's Community Justice Unit.

"District Attorneys can promulgate these changes but they’ll only serve as a half measure until the New York City Police Department scraps broken windows policing," Posada said in a statement. "The notion that New York is a model sanctuary city is a complete farce as long as the Mayor and NYPD brass advocate for this strict enforcement that overwhelmingly targets black and brown New Yorkers."

(Lead image: People wait on the platform at a subway station in Manhattan in 2002. Photo by Stephen Chernin/Getty Images)