File photo: NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio. (Photo: Agencies)
NEW YORK — Protesters have continued to march in New York City, but officials were hopeful that an earlier curfew and refinements to police tactics are helping restore order after days of unrest over the death of George Floyd.
"Last night we took a step forward in moving out of this difficult period we've had the last few days and moving to a better time," Mayor Bill de Blasio said.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who was critical of the police response on prior nights, said the city was "much better" Tuesday and that officers were better equipped to keep the peace.
"Last night was a much, much better than the night before. So it worked. We got results. Let's just remember what we did last night and keep that going." Cuomo said.
De Blasio rejected urging from President Donald Trump and an offer from Cuomo to bring in the National Guard to quell the unrest, saying he thought the NYPD was best suited for the task and fearing confrontations spurred by out-of-town Guardsmen unfamiliar with the city's dynamics.
Trump warned that if New York City didn't maintain order, he would take the matter into his own hands, though he didn't say what action he might take.
"If they don't get their act straightened out, I will solve it. I'll solve it fast," he said on FOX News Radio's The Brian Kilmeade Show.
The citywide curfew, barring people from the streets and nonessential vehicles from part of Manhattan from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m., was imposed to prevent the nighttime chaos that followed peaceful protests for several days in a row.
Vandalism and pilfering didn't stop completely Tuesday night. Some shops had windows smashed and merchandise taken. But it was a contrast from the previous two days, when several Manhattan shopping districts and one in the Bronx were overrun with people — some armed with crowbars and clubs — who ransacked numerous shops and set fires.
Moving the curfew earlier from 11 p.m., where it had been Monday night, as well as blocking vehicles from entering Manhattan, allowed police to take control of city streets and remove troublemakers, Chief of Department Terence Monahan said.
The curfew did not curtail political demonstrations over police mistreatment of black Americans. Marchers chanted slogans as they wound through the streets of Manhattan and Brooklyn deep into the night Tuesday. The marches were part of a wave of protests across the country since the May 25 death of Floyd, a black man who died after a white Minneapolis police officer pressed a knee on Floyd's neck.
The nightly curfews will remain in effect through Sunday, with the city planning to lift it at the same time it enters the first phase of reopening after more than two months of shutdowns because of the coronavirus.
"I'd like us never to have to use it again, if we do things right," de Blasio said.
Police said they arrested about 280 people on protest-related charges Tuesday, compared with 700 the previous night. Police Commissioner Dermot Shea said some people breaking into stores were part of organized groups using vehicles to scout locations and transport stolen property, including in one instance a U-Haul truck.
"We also see a lot of people just peeling off, using the protests as cover and then peeling off and unfortunately running around and doing some looting," Shea said.
De Blasio condemned police for roughing up journalists covering the protests, including two from The Associated Press.
More than a half-dozen officers surrounded, shoved and cursed at videojournalist Robert Bumsted and photographer Maye-E Wong and ordered them to go home Tuesday night, ignoring Bumsted's explanation that the press are considered "essential workers" and are allowed to be on the streets.
"No journalist should ever be detained ever," de Blasio said, except in what he deemed an "aberrant" situation of a journalist committing an illegal act.
"There should be no condition under which any journalist is detained by the police of this city or any city in the United States of America, period," he added, calling for an investigation.
Shea said officers were "doing the best we can under difficult circumstances," adding that some people stopped by police were lying about being journalists.
"Sometimes these things take a second, maybe too long, to sort out," Shea said. "We're not perfect, we do the best we can in a situation." The police commissioner had planned to appear together with Floyd's brother Wednesday at a Brooklyn church, but Terrence Floyd decided shortly before the event began that he was too overcome to attend, organizers said. Shea said he'd offered his condolences to Floyd on the phone.
Asked what he wanted to see with more protests planned for Wednesday, de Blasio said: "What I want to see tonight is peace in this city ... I want to see tonight be better than last night, and I want us to just keep making progress from there."
AP News