In the Media

At a time when police seem to hold such an exalted place in society that they are beyond the justice demanded by common citizens, it’s no surprise that few give any credence to the man who attempted to blame the victim last week by declaring that Freddie Gray intentionally tried to injure himself. Actually, many expected something like this would emerge, to deflect responsibility from the Baltimore police — and justify the use of force with impunity. But the fact is that, as I write this column, two weeks after Freddie Gray, 25, died while in Baltimore police custody, no officer has been fired, arrested, or prosecuted — although Friday the State’s Attorney, Marilyn Mosby, said that Gray’s death had been ruled a homicide.

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio denied that the city had toughened its policing strategy in response to the riots in Baltimore after some lawmakers accused the city's police force of overly aggressive tactics in its handling of protests on Wednesday night.

A coalition of civil rights and social justice organizations in New York City came out Thursday against a City Council plan to hire 1,000 police officers. The group of organizations, which collectively represent communities of color, the LGBT community, low-income residents, youth, the homeless and immigrant New Yorkers, said adding the officers amid growing concerns about police accountability in New York and across the nation would be a bad move.

Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito made her call for 1,000 new cops official today—even as some police reform groups typically aligned with the Council’s progressive wing have come out in opposition to the proposal to boost the NYPD’s ranks.