Michael Bloomberg apologizes for stop-and-frisk policy amid a potential presidential run – By Nicole Einbinder (Business Insider) / Nov 17 2019
- Former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg apologized in a Sunday speech for his support of the New York Police Department’s use of “stop-and-frisk.”
- For years, Bloomberg has vigorously defended “stop-and-frisk,” even after a federal judge ruled in 2013 that the program violated the constitutional rights of minorities.
- Bloomberg’s speech comes as he considers a possible presidential run for the Democratic nomination.
Former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg apologized on Sunday for his support of the New York Police Department’s use of “stop-and-frisk,” reversing his longstanding stance on the issue as he gears up for a potential presidential run for the Democratic nomination.
“I was wrong,” the billionaire said during a speech at a black megachurch in Brooklyn. “And I am sorry.”
Bloomberg on stop-and-frisk this a.m.: "I got something important wrong. I got something important really wrong."
"We could and should have acted sooner and acted faster to reduce the stops."
"I was wrong and I am sorry."
— Bill Hammond (@NYHammond) November 17, 2019
The NYPD’s aggressive “stop-and-frisk” policy gave officers broad authority to stop and search people on the street, with the number of stops growing to hundreds of thousands each year under the Bloomberg administration. In 2013, a federal judge rule that “stop-and-frisk” violated the constitutional rights of minorities; according to the New York Civil Liberties Union, most of the people stopped were black and Latino, and nearly all were innocent.
Despite that, Bloomberg continued to vigorously defend the program. In the aftermath of the court ruling, he blasted Judge Shira Scheindlin’s decision, calling Scheindlin “an ideologically driven federal judge who has a history of ruling against the police,” and noting that “when it comes to policing, political correctness is deadly.”
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