Cops threaten rule-book slowdown
Going forward, for members of the NYPD, we want you to do your job and follow the rule book the way it’s written. If there’s a delay getting to the next place, so be it.
— Ed Mullins (near left), president of the NYPD Sergeants
Benevolent Association The document from the Medical Examiner’s Office, that is a political document not backed up by the scientific report. — Pat Lynch (at podium Tuesday), president of the Patrolmen’s
Benevolent Association
NYPD cops are so fed up with Mayor de Blasio over the Eric Garner case that they’re threatening to work strictly by the book to protect themselves — even if it keeps them from responding to emergencies.
The head of the city sergeants union on Tuesday publicly urged cops to dot every “i” and cross every “t” amid de Blasio’s alleged lack of support for officers after Garner’s chokehold death in police custody last month.
“Going forward, for members of the NYPD, we want you to do your job and follow the rule book the way it’s written,” Sergeants Benevolent Association President Ed Mullins said during a news conference in Manhattan. “If there’s a delay getting to the next place, so be it.”
Mullins later elaborated on his comments.
“When a police officer responds to a scene, he should complete the job there before moving on to the next job,” Mullins said.
“Let’s say he gets called to a burglary, then he should follow the job to its completion before responding to the second job. And if the second job is more serious, the officer might not respond there immediately, depending on what’s happening in the first job he responded to.”
At the same news conference, Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association President Pat Lynch insisted that a chokehold wasn’t used during Garner’s caughtonvideo arrest, and blasted the Medical Examiner’s Office review that ruled Garner’ser’s July 17 death a homicide.
“The document from the Medical Examiner’s Office, that is a political document not backed up by the scientific report,” Lynch seethed.
“This wasas not a chokeholdchoke hold. We will get medical examiners to go over this autopsy when it is finally released,” he added.
Lynch also noted that Garner “was a large man who was resisting arrest, he had to be bbrought to the ground the way wwe’re trained.”
And he ripped de Blasio for nnot having cops’ backs.
“I think the mayor needs to support New York City’s police officers — unequivocally say it, and unequivocally say resisting arrest hurts everyone, police officers and citizens alike, and will not be toleerated,” Lynch said.
He also attacked the Rev. Al SSharpton, whom he called one of the “race baiters . . . whose business is to stir up the street, nnot make the street safe.”
Mayor de Blasio, who appeared at a Brooklyn news conference at around the same time, said he was “concerned” bby Mullins’ remarks but was coconfident that “the rankandfile are here to do their job and they will do their job.”
De Blasio said he had “immense respect for the men and women of the NYPD,” but added, “Every lawenforcement official, every officer, has to serve the people of this city.”
Commissioner Bill Bratton said, “I would expect that our officers always work by the books . . . that they always obey the rules and the procedures of the department.”
Asked about Lynch denying that Officer Daniel Pantaleo used a chokehold on Garner, Bratton replied, “It appeared to be a chokehold, but until there is a finding of fact, we won’t know for certain.”
In a statement, the ME’s spokeswoman said, “The determination made by the Medical Examiner’s Office is the result of an independent scientific investigation. We stand by our findings.”
Meanwhile, if police weren’t already angry enough, the new head of the Civilian Complaint Review Board wants to create a CompStattype system to identify patterns of abuse and complaints involving NYPD officers. Additional reporting by Jamie Schram, Larry Celona, Aaron Feis