New York City will pay more than $20,000 to some 320 protesters who were victims of a controversial police operation in the Bronx in June 2020, during anti-racism demonstrations that followed the death of George Floyd and were marred by violence, according to a court document.
In the weeks following the death of this African-American killed on May 25, 2020 by a white police officer in Minneapolis, New York, like other major cities in the United States, had seen thousands of people take to the streets to protest against racism.
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Some demonstrations had degenerated into scenes of looting and police violence had been denounced, especially in the megalopolis of the American east coast.
146 cases of violence, abuse of authority or insults
At the beginning of February, a city commission responsible for collecting complaints had recommended disciplinary sanctions against police officers in 146 cases of violence, abuse of authority or insults.
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The agreement concluded by the city of New York, which must still be validated by federal justice, only concerns a demonstration, on June 4, 2020 in the Bronx, according to a court document filed on Tuesday in the proceedings and released on Wednesday by media. The police are accused of having used an encirclement technique that day to prevent any movement of the demonstrators, “arrested and charged without just cause, and subjected to excessive force”according to the court document.
In its report, the city commission looked into this case and listed, among other things, complaints against “some policemen getting on vehicles and beating protesters with truncheons”indiscriminate use of tear gas and handcuffing.
“A difficult time”
Asked by AFP, the New York police responded that these complaints followed “arrests” for some “curfew violations” then in place at 8:00 p.m. and decided by then-Democratic mayor Bill de Blasio after incidents at previous protests.
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Police say it was“a difficult time” for its agents, in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic, and that they had “everything to facilitate the right to peaceful expression, while facing acts of lawlessness”. However, she adds that she has “redesigned” its policy and training for policing large-scale protests.