WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 02nd June, 2020) New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio and the police department failed to effectively utilize resources including the National Guard to contain protests last night, Governor Andrew Cuomo said on Tuesday.
"The NYPD [New York Police Department] and the Mayor did not do their job last night," Cuomo told reporters. "The police in New York City were not effective... they have to do a better job."
The governor said he was disappointed and outraged that the largest police department in the United States, with 38,000 officers, failed to protect people and property. He also blasted the mayor for not using the 13,000 National Guard members on stand by and state police mobilized all across the state that can be deployed anywhere.
Cuomo said he believes the mayor has underestimated the scope and duration of the problem. The governor also said that while he had legal authority to overrule the mayor, "they are not there yet."
New curfew measures imposed in New York City due to violent protests over the death of a black man in police custody will remain in place from through June 7, de Blasio said in a press briefing on Tuesday.
Mass demonstrations across the United States after George Floyd, an unarmed 46-year-old African American man, died in police custody in Minneapolis, Minnesota on May 25. Some protests have turned into riots complete with violence, arson and widespread looting. The protests erupted after video surfaced showing white police officer Derek Chauvin kneeling on Floyd's neck for nearly nine minutes before he lost consciousness. On Monday the county examiner ruled Floyd's death a homicide.
