Editor’s note: Bronx State Sen. Gustavo Rivera is holding a community conversation on Stop & Frisk tonight at 6:30 p.m. at his district office, 2432 Grand Concourse, 4th floor, room 419. The article below appears in the May 17-30 print edition of the Norwood News. In the above video, ABC News reports on a new class action lawsuit filed on behalf of stop & frisk victims.

With the numbers of unwarranted and unproductive stop and frisks by police rising across New York City, some elected officials are beginning to call for change.

In the first three months of 2012, more than 203,500 New Yorkers were stopped by the police and 89 percent of them were cleared of any wrongdoing.

In response, Public Advocate Bill de Blasio called for Mayor Bloomberg to reform the broken policy.

De Blasio wants Bloomberg to issue an Executive Order to curtail the number of stop and frisks by police. He requested the NYPD use CompStat, an organizational tool for monitoring crime statistics, to track stop and frisk numbers. He believes that tracking unwarranted stops will make it easier to hold officers accountable for their performance and reduce the number as a whole.

The benefits of the tactic, which Bloomberg and Police Commissioner Ray Kelly say has been a huge part in the citywide drop in violent crime over the past two decades, are outweighed by the mistrust it causes, de Blasio said.

“Every unwarranted stop widens the gap between police and the communities they protect — making us all less safe,” de Blasio said.

Bloomberg is taking heat after supporting the unwarranted stop and frisks and deciding to cut after-school programs that keep youth off the streets (see page 6).

“The mayor needs to exercise leadership and direct the NYPD to reduce unwarranted stops,” de Blasio said. “If he doesn’t, we will show him the way.”

On Thursday night, May 17, at 6:30 p.m., at his office at 2432 Grand Concourse, 4th floor, room 419, local State Senator Gustavo Rivera is holding a “community conversation” about stop and frisk practices. For more information, call Katrina Asante, (718) 933-2034 or e-mail asante@nysenate.gov.