The NYPD made more than 50,680 arrests for low-level marijuana offenses in 2011, once again making low-level pot possession the number one cause of arrest in NYC. 2011 was the second-highest period for marijuana arrests in New York City history, and this despite NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly specifically ordering officers to stop arresting people who bring small quantities of marijuana into open view during a stop-and-frisk. In a September memo, Kelly told officers, "A crime will not be charged to an individual who is requested or compelled to engage in the behavior that results in the public display of marijuana." Unfortunately, most hippies were too stoned to read all the way the bottom of the memo, where Kelly included a photo of himself winking slyly. more ›

As Yogi Berra might say, it's deja vu all over again: over 25 Occupy Wall Street protesters have been arrested today at a foreclosure auction protest in Brooklyn this afternoon. According to John Knefel, over 80 people crammed into Brooklyn Supreme Court to sing songs and blockade the foreclosure sales, and it seemingly worked: "4 cops just said the auction was cancelled. #ows now being forced to leave. could it be a ruse? #blockade." Check out a video of protesters singing in the courthouse here, and below. more ›

The NYPD announced that it conducted a four-day prostitution sting in 27 police precincts across the city, resulting in many arrests. One hundred eighty-six johns were arrested—the Post says, "Undercover cops pose as hookers and collar those johns looking for a prostitute," and the sting was called “Operation Losing Proposition." more ›

Good job, drunks, public sex enthusiasts and folks who like to poop outside of bathrooms: Organizers have cancelled the popular Hoboken St. Patrick's Day Parade, noting the city's "inability to protect our spectators, bands and participants." more ›

The NYPD has arrested almost 2,000 protesters since the Occupy Wall Street movement began, and some of those arrested have refused to go the usual route taken by demonstrators. Typically, someone arrested for disorderly conduct at a protest will agree to an ACD (Adjournment in Contemplation of Dismissal), which means that the charges are dropped after six months if the individual stays out of trouble (or whatever our police state considers "trouble" these days). But some of those arrested are refusing the routine plea deal and are demanding a trial, because they insist the charges are bogus. And yesterday, prosecutors decided to back down and drop the charges against 21 of them. more ›

The NYPD says it arrested two men after finding "two live grenades and three other 'works in progress'" plus illegal weapons in a Bronx home yesterday morning. According to WCBS 2, "Anthony Cibelli, 24, and Juan Pagan, 25, were charged with Criminal Possession of a Weapon for an explosive device and firearm, Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance and Criminal Possession of Marijuana." more ›

252 protesters were arrested yesterday during the daylong Occupy Wall Street demonstrations, an NYPD spokesman tells us. Five protesters were charged with felony assault, and there were at least a dozen reported injuries sustained by police and protesters. One officer policing Zuccotti Park in the afternoon was struck in the eye by an "unknown object," while another got a "nasty, nasty" cut to his left thumb after an unidentified person threw a "star-shaped glass object" at him, according to the Wall Street Journal. Mayor Bloomberg visited the officer at Bellevue, and then held a press conference to chastise the demonstrators. more ›

On October 1st, when Occupy Wall Street was still in its infancy, more than 700 protesters were arrested after OWS marched onto the Brooklyn Bridge. Protesters claimed that police lured them onto the roadway of the bridge—leading them there as an excuse to arrest en masse—while the NYPD maintains that they warned protesters they would be arrested for blocking the street. Now, a civil rights group has come to the aid of those arrested, petitioning Manhattan DA Cy Vance Jr. to drop all the charges. more ›

Approximately 1,000 Occupy Wall Street protesters marched to Foley Square at around 3 p.m. this afternoon to protest the Obama administration's role in a settlement that would indemnify banks who were directly involved with creating the mortgage crisis. Though the NYPD could not confirm the number of arrests, a DCPI officer noted that "they would be in the family of 20 or so," more than the four that the movement claims were arrested on the steps of the Supreme Court building. Eyewitnesses wrote that the NYPD began arresting protesters after they blocked pedestrian traffic in front of the courthouse, and one claims that video will surface of a NYPD officer punching a protester in the face. more ›

The Occupy Wall Street protests which began in NYC just over a month ago went global this weekend—and across the nation, hundreds of protesters were arrested as cops clashed with demonstrators in Chicago, Phoenix, Denver and Raleigh. And in Washington D.C., Dr. Cornel West—who had appeared in solidarity with OWS protesters two weeks ago—was arrested at the Supreme Court steps. more ›

According to the Daily News, at least 20 Occupy Wall Street protesters have been arrested this afternoon. A group of protesters marched to Citibank at 555 LaGuardia just after 11 a.m. this morning with NYPD shadowing them. They report that one protester's hands were bleeding as he was pulled into an NYPD van. [Updates Below] more ›

Here's video of yesterday's seemingly stupid arrest of City Councilman Jumaane Williams (D-Brooklyn) and Kirsten John Foy, Public Advocate de Blasio's Community Affairs Director, after the West Indian Day Parade. Williams, Foy, and others were attempting to take a shortcut to exit the parade so they could make an appearance at a gathering by the Brooklyn Museum. But the NYPD had different plans for them. Here's video: more ›

Christopher Coke, a drug kingpin who appreciates coke and weed as well as a nice wig, has pleaded guilty to charges of racketeering conspiracy. The deal means Coke could spend up to 23 years in prison. more ›

For the past year, community leaders and concerned citizens have demonstrated and spoken out against Mayor Bloomberg's aggressive marijuana arrest policies, which has led to NYC becoming the low-level marijuana arrest capital of the world. Now, a group of City Council and Assembly members assembled outside of City Hall this morning to introduce a new resolution to try to curtail what they call the "racially biased, costly marijuana arrest crusade in NYC." more ›

Marshall Tames, a 67-year-old Athletic Director at Erasmus Hall High School in Brooklyn, was arrested and charged with assault last week for allegedly slapping a female security guard when she didn't let him pass a checkpoint at the school quickly enough. According to witnesses, Tames demanded that the guard let him through a metal detector, but when she instructed him to wait, Tames grew angry and slapped her. more ›

Last year, when the NYPD broke its previous all-time-high record for stop-and-frisks with a sensational 601,055 street stops, many fans thought there was no way they could top one in 2011! But Coach Ray Kelly's NYPD dream team is on track for yet another champion stop-and-frisk season this year! Police have stopped and interrogated over 161,000 innocent New Yorkers in the first quarter of 2011, and at this rate they'll easily crush last year's record with over 700,000 stops. But will the NYPD's bitter rivals—the wild card underdog New York Civil Liberties Union [NYCLU]—steal their thunder in the playoffs? more ›

Federal and local authorities have raided a Long Island apartment complex in what's being called a "major drug bust." At least 15 have been arrested—many of them suspected members of the Bloods—in Rockville Centre. more ›