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Violent Arrest Of Brooklyn Mom During Mask Confrontation Deemed "Troubling" By De Blasio
By
Jake Offenhartz
Published May 14, 2020
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By
Jake Offenhartz
Published May 14, 2020
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Mayor Bill de Blasio signaled he would reevaluate the NYPD's approach to social distancing enforcement, following another viral video showing officers violently arresting a woman who was not wearing a mask inside a Brooklyn subway station.
"What we saw there did not reflect our values, did not reflect our goals of deescalation, and we have to be better," the mayor said during his Thursday morning press conference.
The video shows Kaleemah Rozier, 22, arguing with police officers as they attempted to kick her and her young child out of the Atlantic Avenue-Barclays station at around noon on Wednesday. Rozier, who appears to be wearing a mask around her neck, allegedly used "vulgar language" while rejecting cops' orders to properly cover her face, according to an NYPD spokesperson.
As officers escort her from the station, one of them grabs her, at which point she appears to bat his hand away, telling the officers: "Do not touch me."
Multiple officers then put their hands on the woman, bringing her to the ground and placing her in handcuffs, as her young child watches. During the chaotic arrest, Rozier's face is pushed inches away from the floor of the subway station.
"She’s got a kid with her!" one bystander can be heard saying. "She’s got her mask on! Her baby’s even got a mask on! That’s too much, man!”
Rozier, a Sunset Park resident, was arrested on charges of resisting arrest, disorderly conduct, and harassment, police said.
While de Blasio criticized the arrest as "deeply troubling," the NYPD stood by the officers' handling of the interaction.
"We are confident that the police officers in this incident acted appropriately and with respect," an NYPD spokesperson, who declined to provide their name, said in an emailed statement. "This individual was arrested only after her behavior toward officers warranted police action."
Tensions have built in recent weeks following a barrage of videos depicting NYPD officers violently confronting black and Hispanic New Yorkers under the guise of social distancing violations. Limited data released by the department, as well as figures from local prosecutors, have underscored concerns that the NYPD is almost exclusively targeting communities of color for enforcement of the public health measures.
De Blasio, who previously shrugged off the disparities, suggested on Thursday that the city would reassess its social distancing strategies, without going into detail about what that would entail.
"What we've been trying to do until now is address situations as they emerge," he said. "It's clear we have to improve supervision, training, and the game plan."
Police Commissioner Dermot Shea was not present at Thursday's press conference, after he delivered an impassioned defense of NYPD behavior during the previous day's briefing, accusing critics of the department of putting officers in harm's way.
He was sharply criticized for those comments on Thursday morning by Queens Councilman Donovan Richards, who called for the NYPD's budget to be cut by $50 million this year during a City Council meeting on public safety.
"Us criticizing you doesn’t put your cops in danger," said Richards, who heads the council's Public Safety Committee. "It is pleading with you to change the way you teach officers to treat us. Instead of getting defensive about it, how about you just listen to the criticism and take a look at what you can do better?"
Tagged
police brutality
brooklyn
mayor de blasio
nypd
dermot shea
Jake Offenhartz
Jake Offenhartz is a former Gothamist reporter.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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