Eric Adams, Mayor of Philadelphia, criticized civilians who record police officers arresting criminals from a distance. He warned that they create a dangerous environment and make it harder for law enforcement officers.
Stop being on top of my police officers while they’re carrying out their jobs,” Adams sternly warned.
“That is not acceptable and it won’t be tolerated. That is a very dangerous environment you are creating when you’re on top of that officer who has an understanding of what he’s doing at the time, yelling police brutality. Yelling at the officer, calling them out. Now, he has to worry about who’s behind him, said the mayor.
If an officer is on the ground wrestling with someone that has a gun, they should not have to worry about someone standing over them with a camera while they’re wrestling with someone, Adams said Wednesday in College Point, Queens, ahead of a police academy training session for the NYPDs revamped anti-gun units.
He stated that video recordings are useful in analysing a situation but that there have been too many instances where people filming close to the scene endanger themselves or cause arrests.
This is unacceptable. It’s not going to continue to happen, he said.
The City Council bill that protects citizens’ right to film police officers states it must be done from a safe distance. However, it doesn’t specify what that means, so it is up to the cops on scene to decide.
The impassioned plea came Wednesday during a press conference detailing the rollout of the NYPDs new Neighborhood Safety Teams, a key part of Adams’ plan to get guns off the streets.
After a slight delay, the new anti-gun teams, which replace the controversial plainclothes anti crime teams that were disbanded in 2012, took to the streets Monday in its initial phase.
Five officers and a sergeant were assigned to patrol areas most affected in 2021 by gun violence.
Officials from police stated Wednesday that they have consulted the communities and listened to their concerns to adjust the policing strategies to fit their needs, as The Post reported Friday.
Chief of the Department Ken Corey could only say how many officers from the anti-crime unit were transferred to the new Neighborhood Safety Team, but doubled down on the vetting process. The Post reported this in January.
These officers will be marked as police, unlike previous teams. This is in response to complaints from residents and reformers about police officers who were undercover and went after trigger pullers, leading to an increase in shootings.
There was a mindset that everyone who lived in a certain precinct, or zip code, was considered a criminal. This was especially true if they were young or of color. [and]Adams suggested that Adams should just make sure Adams catches everyone in a wide net.
We are not doing that right now.
The patrol cars will be unmarked police cars that will eventually be equipped with dashboard cameras.
Officers will also be equipped with body cameras to capture every incident.
Corey stated that the NYPD would review all the videos where force was not used. However, he did not explain how it will choose to review other videos.
We must combine intelligence-based policing and thorough and clear community engagement. Police Commissioner Keechant Sewell stated that this was being done at the NYPD Police Academy during a press conference.