Despite violent arrest, NYPD to maintain distancing patrols
A man, left, arrives for a test as police officers stand at the entrance of a COVID-19 test site for first responders at the Westchester County Center, Monday, May 4, 2020, in White Plains, N.Y. The new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms for most people, but for some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness or death. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)
NEW YORK (AP) — New York City’s mayor is rejecting calls to stop having police officers enforce social distancing during the coronavirus crisis.
One officer was caught on video over the weekend pulling a stun gun on a man and violently taking him to the ground.
Mayor Bill de Blasio said Monday that the confrontation in Manhattan’s East Village was “very troubling” and “absolutely unacceptable.”
But he contended it was an outlier among “tens of thousands of interactions between police officers and civilians over the last weeks that went very well.”
The officer was stripped of his gun and badge and placed on desk duty pending an internal investigation.
