In the Media

Long-Promised Study of De Blasio's Neighborhood Policing Program Delayed Into His Final Months In Office

09/29/2020
Gotham Gazette

An external study of the NYPD’s neighborhood policing program, which Mayor Bill de Blasio and NYPD leadership have promised for years, has been delayed because of the pandemic, according to the company conducting the review. The results of the study, which is supposed to provide empirical support for one of de Blasio’s signature initiatives that he regularly credits for what he says are improved police-community relations, were originally due in mid-2021 and it’s currently unclear when they will be released.

Judge Clears Way For Eric Garner's Family To Question Mayor Bill De Blasio And NYPD Under Oath

09/25/2020
Gothamist
A New York Supreme Court judge ruled Thursday that a judicial inquiry into whether the New York Police Department failed to properly investigate the police officers involved in the death of Eric Garner in 2014 can go forward. The ruling potentially clears the way for Mayor Bill de Blasio and former NYPD Commissioner James O’Neill, to be compelled to testify under oath about how they handled the aftermath of Garner’s death.

Should police respond to mental health calls?

The death of Daniel Prude in Rochester has prompted calls to reimagine mental health crisis response.
09/10/2020
City & State

Eight years before Daniel Prude – a Black man experiencing a mental health crisis – died after being detained by police in Rochester, Hawa Bah watched a similar situation play out with her own son, Mohamed, in New York City. In 2012, Hawa Bah, a Guinean immigrant, called 911 for an ambulance to help her son, who had been acting erratically. New York City Police Department officers arrived at his apartment and eventually shot Mohamed Bah eight times, killing him. Police said Mohamed Bah lunged at one officer with a knife.

De Blasio takes Obama pledge to improve policing

09/10/2020
Amsterdam News

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio took a pledge to improve police oversight and address extrajudicial police force.

On Monday, Aug. 31, the mayor spoke with reporters on adapting the Obama Foundation’s (former President Barack Obama) pledge directed toward mayors and city councils around the country to review use of force policies, engage the community with diverse ranges of input in the review, report the findings of the review back to the community and through that, reform police use of force.

Under New Body Camera Policy, NYPD Still Controls the Video and the Narrative

09/01/2020
Gotham Gazette

In June, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced a new policy for automatically publishing body camera footage within 30 days when police officers kill or seriously injure someone. The step, he said, would give the public more assurances that they would actually see video captured in serious cases of police force, an implicit but often unrealized aim of the transparency program. But more than two months since the policy was implemented, old questions remain about who controls what footage is released, how it is edited and, ultimately, the narrative it creates.

NYPD unveils new blueprint for how to discipline officers over violations

08/31/2020
New York Post

The NYPD has revealed a plan for how to reprimand cops for internal violations including the use of chokeholds, failing to turn on body-worn cameras and leaking information to the press.

A draft of the lengthy disciplinary matrix — which is used by other police departments across the country, including Los Angeles and New Orleans — was published online Monday morning for public review before it goes into effect on Jan. 15, 2021.

NYPD's New "Discipline Matrix" Would Recommend, For The First Time, Specific Penalties For Misconduct

08/31/2020
Gothamist

Following the lead of police departments across the country, the NYPD has issued its own "discipline penalty matrix" that outlines specific punishments for instances of police misconduct.

The document comes at the recommendation of an independent panel convened by the NYPD in 2018 to improve the department's tangled and opaque disciplinary system. While both the Civilian Complaint Review Board and the NYPD itself conduct investigations into police misconduct, the NYPD Commissioner alone has the sole authority to punish or fire an officer.

How Do Black Lawmakers and Activists View ‘Defunding the NYPD’? It’s Complicated

08/28/2020
Gotham Gazette

The New York City Council and Mayor Bill de Blasio crafted an $88.2 billion budget for the current fiscal year in what was one of the most contentious budget negotiations in years, coming amid a pandemic-caused recession and a resurgent racial justice movement that sought to “Defund the NYPD” and redirect some of its massive resources to social services in communities of color.

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