#De Blasio backs NYPD Chief of Department against criticism of response to protests

Mayor Bill de Blasio picked sides with NYPD Chief of Department Terence Monahan Tuesday over criticism of his handling of past protests, praising the long-time officer for taking a knee during a George Floyd demonstration in Washington Square Park earlier this month.

Monahan, who’s been a cop for 38 years, was a deputy-chief in August 2004 when he ordered officers at the GOP convention in Manhattan to make mass arrests of protesters who were marching the city’s streets. He later took criticism for the move.

“I know him,” de Blasio said of the NYPD’s highest-ranking uniformed officer. “I know his heart — he is doing a  whole lot not only to keep this city safe but to change the NYPD.”

During the RNC protests, about 225 protesters were rounded up in different parts of the city and arrested. Many were brought to the Tombs — the city’s downtown jail complex. Charges against all of them were later dismissed.

“Anything like that today is being looked at very carefully,” the mayor said.

The mayor praised Monahan for taking a knee and locking arms with protesters on June 1, as protests grew across the city.

“Terry Monahan defused a very tense situation in Washington Square Park,” de Blasio said.

“This is not just an average cop. He took a knee with the protesters out of respect. That’s an indelibly powerful statement.”