State Sen. Simcha Felder today questioned whether NYPD deployment to cover Saturday’s massive protest might have contributed to the tire slashings in his district.
The slashings of tires on more than 40 parked cars happened late Saturday night and early Sunday in Felder’s Madison/Marine Park portion of his district. It led to City Councilman David Greenfield offering a $1,000 reward to catch the perpetrator and he questioned if it was a possible hate crime as the vandalism occurred in a heavy Jewish neighborhood.
Video cameras showed a white man and woman doing the slashings. Police later today took in a 21-year-old Jewish male for questioning on the incident.
Police said his name is not being released as charges are still pending.
But Felder insists that possible bad police policy contributed to the slashings, and might be affecting quality of life issues.
“I understand there’s no way they can handle the protesters without taking away resources from elsewhere,” said Felder. “I’m in the process of finding out if resources were taken away from local precincts, and I’m concerned it may be putting neighborhoods in the city at risk.”
NYPD Patrolman’s Benevolent Association spokesperson Al O’Leary said it’s not the union’s call on deployment matters, but it’s the norm to take cops out of precincts during large protests or events.
The protest drew an estimated 25,000 people, and centered around some cops’ mistreatment of men of color, and the criminal system’s inability to publicly try or indict police that allegedly mistreat citizens it is charged with serving and protecting.
