Bill de Blasio Says It’s Too Soon to Say if Race Was a Factor in Eric Garner Death

[hrmjustin]

Jillian Jorgensen

Mayor Bill de Blasio declined to say Monday whether race was a factor in the death of Eric Garner in NYPD custody — something several elected officials have alleged and his police commissioner has denied – but said it certainly has been a factor in NYPD and community relations before.

“If you talk about the last decade or so in the city, was race a factor and a problem in the relationship between police and community? Obviously it was,” Mr. de Blasio said at a press conference Monday.

It was the first time he’s taken questions stateside about Mr. Garner’s death in more than a week, after returning from a trip to Italy that was delayed by a day as video emerged of police taking down the Staten Island man using what appeared to be a chokehold.

Since then, Rev. Al Sharpton has held marches and rallies and his National Action Network paid for Mr. Garner’s funeral. Several elected officials, including some in the City Council, have said that Mr. Garner was stopped for selling loose cigarettes, and subsequently died, because he was black.


Read more at http://observer.com/2014/07/bill-de-blasio-says-its-too-soon-to-say-if-race-was-a-factor-in-eric-garner-death/#ixzz38nghWNYH

[Cooley Hurd]

1. The definition of "probable cause" has been stretched to the limits w/ the NYPD

They proclaim "probable cause" whenever they want, regardless of the presence of cause. And, it's not only the NYPD exploiting it...

[hrmjustin]

2. Agreed! Probable cause needs to be defined more by the courts.

[Cooley Hurd]

3. But cops are proxies of the courts...

...and they've been playing fast and loose with the concept of probable cause for decades now.

[hrmjustin]

4. And nothing is likely to change.

[hrmjustin]

5. Mayor de Blasio endorses body cameras for cops

http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypolitics/mayor-de-blasio-endorses-body-cameras-cops-blog-entry-1.1883340

[hrmjustin]

6. Mayor de Blasio defends 'broken windows' strategy after Eric Garner death

http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypolitics/mayor-de-blasio-defends-broken-windows-strategy-eric-garner-death-blog-entry-1.1883277