'Disorder' Or Anomaly? NYC Cop Drenchings Spark Policing Debate

NEW YORK — Is it a symptom of lawlessness or just heat-induced delirium when a cop gets drenched? Depends who you ask.

Two incidents in which New Yorkers doused on-the-job officers with buckets of water have sparked a debate over whether the city's approach to policing has birthed chaos in the streets.

Major police unions and conservative politicians seized on videos of the attacks in Harlem and Brownsville, saying Mayor Bill de Blasio's policies have hamstrung cops and encouraged reckless behavior. But the mayor and one of his persistent critics say those complaints are just hot air.

"We are a safer city. That’s what the purpose is supposed to be," Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, a Democrat, said at a news conference Wednesday. "So don’t pretend that that’s not what’s happening and get a false narrative in people’s heads around the city unnecessarily."

One video circulated on social media Monday shows two cops being drenched with water while making an arrest in Harlem. One of the officers also appeared to be hit in the head with a bucket. Another clip from Brownsville shows a pair of cops being splashed before a man dumps a bucket of water over one of the officer's heads.

The wet cops did not appear to cuff anyone dousing them at the scene. But the NYPD said police have arrested one person in connection with the Brooklyn soaking and two others accused of throwing water on a woman while she talked to cops in Harlem.

Before the cuffs went on, Republicans and some police union officials accused de Blasio and his administration of using a light touch on crime while making cops afraid to take action. The Sergeants Benevolent Association called it the "Pantaleo affect (sic)," a reference to Officer Daniel Pantaleo, who is facing termination from the police force for his role in the 2014 death of Eric Garner.

"We are approaching the point of no return," Patrick Lynch, the president of the city's Police Benevolent Association, said in a statement Monday. "Disorder controls the streets, and our elected leaders refuse to allow us to take them back. As police officers, we need to draw a line."

De Blasio and Williams have been forceful both in their condemnation of the cop soakings and the defense of the city's approach to policing, which has involved a decrease in arrests and a focus on building relationships between officers and the neighborhoods they serve.

The city's top two elected officials noted that major violent crimes have fallen to historic lows in recent years as de Blasio and others have worked to change how cops and New Yorkers relate to each other.

"The truth is crime's NEVER been lower in New York City and that's because we're bridging the divide between police and communities," de Blasio said on Twitter in response to criticism from former mayor Rudy Giuliani, who had said his successor was responsible for the "disrespect for the uniform in NYC."

To Williams, critics such as Lynch and Giuliani were ginning up "a false sense of lawlessness" in the city when crime statistics show recent reforms are working.

Officials from the National Latino Officers Association and the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives joined Williams Wednesday to praise the soaked cops and emphasize the importance of maintaining community relationships.

"Officers should not be thinking that this is characteristic of all the other residents of the neighborhood," said National Latino Officers Association chairman and retired NYPD Lt. Anthony Miranda. "As well, it’s not a reflection of community policing that’s been promoted by the Police Department and has been a positive thing in our communities for so long — bridging gaps, creating relationships that have never existed before."

Williams noted that the attacks came amid renewed tension in the city over federal prosecutors' decision not to charge Pantaleo and during a nasty heat wave.

"People do some stupid things when it’s hot, but it’s just not acceptable," he said.