Politics & Government

De Blasio Defends Detaining NYC Protesters For More Than 24 Hours

"It was people destroying stores," Mayor de Blasio said Monday morning. "That was just criminality."

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio speaks to an estimated 10,000 people as they gather in Brooklyn’s Cadman Plaza Park for a memorial service for George Floyd, the man killed by a Minneapolis police officer.
New York Mayor Bill de Blasio speaks to an estimated 10,000 people as they gather in Brooklyn’s Cadman Plaza Park for a memorial service for George Floyd, the man killed by a Minneapolis police officer. ((Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images))

NEW YORK CITY — Mayor Bill de Blasio defended detaining protesters for more than 24 hours by arguing looters behaved like criminals and last week's riots amid the novel coronavirus pandemic created "a perfect storm" that made due process too difficult to uphold.

"The bottom line is when we're dealing with a truly emergency situation I believe everyone is trying to do their best to process people and get them out," de Blasio said. "We had to keep this city safe and that's what we did this week."

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De Blasio defended New York City's criminal justice system as pressure mounts for significant police reform after a week the Washington Post dubbed his "terrible, horrible, no good, very bad week."

The mayor, who has consistently disputed on-the-ground accounts of violent arrests protesters faced at the hands of the NYPD, argued those arrested were looters who needed to be detained to protect the public.

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"You cannot leave out of the equation of what happened Sunday and Monday night that was just criminality," de Blasio said Monday morning. "It was people destroying stores."

The mayor is also fighting rumors that NYPD Commissioner and the chief of department may step down as pressure mounts for significant police reform in New York City.

"I don't know who is planting these rumors," de Blasio told reporters during his Monday morning press briefing. "They're wrong."

Neither Commissioner Dermot Shea nor Chief of Department Terrence Monahan appeared at the press conference, but de Blasio staunchly defended both.

"[Monahan] spoke to the protesters ... he did something I hope will be respected," said de Blasio of the chief's decision to take a knee with protesters in Washington Square Park. "It was a powerful, meaningful moment."

De Blasio hosted the first briefing in a newly reopened New York City as hundreds of his staffers protested outside City Hall.

"Anyone, if they have a concern, I want to hear it," de Blasio said of the protesting staffers. "People should have faith about what we can do in the next year and a half."

As the nation casts its gaze on systematic racial disparities within its police departments, de Blasio declined to specify how much of the NYPD's $6 billion budget would be cut and instead focused on the first phase of reopening.

Instead, de Blasio, who recently drew criticism for telling New Yorkers to "improvise" their commutes, announced New York will see 20 miles of new bus lanes — five new busways and 4 new bus lanes — and increased Staten Island ferry service.

Read More: 14th Street Busway Here To Stay

The mayor also celebrated the city's novel coronavirus tracking indicators, all of which stood below the reopening thresholds even after 10 days of mass protests.

New York City's public hospital system saw 67 new suspected COVID-19 admittances (threshold is 200), 326 ICU patients (threshold is 375) and 3 percent of people testing positive for the virus, de Blasio said.

Health Commissioner Oxiris Barbot confirmed the city had not seen any outbreaks linked to the protests and credited facial coverings and outdoor settings.

Said Barbot, "To date, thankfully, we have not seen any significant spikes."

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