Disarm the police? Maya Wiley's team is forced to deny she wants to take guns AWAY from the NYPD after AOC-backed candidate refused to commit to keeping them during mayoral debate
Maya Wiley's campaign team has been forced to deny that she intends to disarm NYPD cops after the New York mayoral candidate refused to commit to a position during a debate.
Speaking with the top five Democrat candidates on Thursday, Wiley said she was 'not prepared to make that decision in a debate'.
After the debate, her campaign tried to clear up her answer, with spokesperson Julia Savel telling Politico: 'It's a ridiculous question; no one is even discussing taking guns away from cops — clearly Maya wouldn't.'
Maya Wiley's campaign team has been forced to deny that she intends to disarm NYPD cops
Scott Stringer, Kathryn Garcia, Andrew Yang, Maya Wiley and Eric Adams battled it out on the debate stage on Thursday night
The question arose after state Attorney General Letitia James made recommendations to make use-of-force a last resort decision for law enforcement.
During Thursday's debate among the top five Democrat mayoral candidates, Wiley was pushed on the issue of arming cops.
CBS2 reporter Marcia Kramer asked: 'Attorney General Letitia James is proposing legislation to limit cops from firing their weapons, use of force as a last resort.
'Some might ask, why not go all the way and take away the guns altogether like they do in 19 other countries where the bulk of the police force is unarmed.'
But Wiley initially dodged the question as she refused to commit to an answer on whether to remove cops' guns.
Speaking with the top five Democrat candidates on Thursday, Wiley said she was 'not prepared to make that decision in a debate'
The question arose after state Attorney General Letitia James made recommendations to make use-of-force a last resort decision for law enforcement
Wiley presents herself as a reformer, and advocates cutting one billion dollars from the NYPD's budget and reform how the department operates.
A former de Blasio administration official and Civilian Complaint Review Board Wiley said: 'Well, look, one of the things we have to do is acknowledge that the Mayor's job is safety — safety is job one and I'm going to keep New Yorkers safe when I'm mayor.'
Kramer then probed again if she would take away guns but Wiley continued: 'That does mean we want smart policing. I think we know that we have a problem with illegal guns coming into this city.
'We have the strongest gun control laws in the country, the issue is how they're coming in.
During Thursday's debate among the top five Democrat mayoral candidates, Wiley was pushed on the issue of arming cops
The top five Democratic candidates for mayor tackled some of the biggest problems plaguing New Yorkers during a debate on Thursday night and zeroed in on surging crime and other quality of life issues
'We do want a police department that is focused on keeping them out of the city and off our streets.'
Kramer then asked a third time: 'But will you take the guns away from the NYPD.'
Wiley, who has been endorsed by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Elizabeth Warren, responded: 'I am not prepared to make that decision in a debate.
'I am going to have a civilian commissioner and a civilian commission that is going to hold the police accountable and ensure we're safe from crime but also from police violence.'
All four other candidates on the stage, Eric Adams, Kathryn Garcia, Scott Stringer and Andrew Yang, pledged to allow police to keep carrying guns.
New York City mayoral candidate Eric Adams (C) arrives at CBS television studios for the third debate among Democratic candidates for mayor of New York City on Thursday
Adams, a former police captain who also co-founded a leadership group for black officers, has risen to the top of most polls as issues of crime and policing have dominated recent mayoral debates.
The race remains tight, though, with 2020 presidential candidate Andrew Yang, former city sanitation commissioner Kathryn Garcia, city Comptroller Scott Stringer and civil rights attorney Maya Wiley the top contenders in a field of 13 candidates on the Democratic ballot.
Stringer says he would cut at least $1 billion over four years through measures such as transferring mental health response to non-police crisis teams and reducing police overtime.
Garcia has not called for cutting the police budget, but says officers' minimum age should be increased from 21 to 25 and new recruits should be required to live in the city.
Yang backs a police residency requirement as well as beefed up oversight of the department, but rejects calls to defund the police.
'The truth is that New York City cannot afford to defund the police,' he warned.
The Times Square shooting and other high-profile crimes like last weekend's fatal shooting of a 10-year-old boy in Queens have sparked fears of a city under siege.
'Stop the Bloodshed,' screamed a recent front page of the New York Post, which warned of surrendering streets 'to homelessness, filth, crime and guns' in an editorial endorsing Adams.
Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams, whose running as a Democratic mayoral candidate, appears in Flushing, Queens to open a new campaign office earlier this week
Brooklyn borough president Eric Adams staged a press conference, beside his son, Jordan, 25, to insist that he did live in the property earlier this week
Adam's was concerned about NYC's pot laws. 'I'm concerned about the marijuana laws altogether. This can impact on how you respond, it can impair your judgment, so when we talk about legalizing here and how it's going to be rolled out in the city we need to have clear instructions.'
Polling has shown crime is the top issue among likely primary voters. Compared to last year, instances of many major crimes are slightly down, but murders are up 12% and shootings are up 68%. When asked if police officers should continue to carry guns, almost all candidates said yes except Wiley.
Yang said: 'My first act as mayor will be to go to the police and say we need you.'
The hour-long debate focused heavily on crime, but also touched on how the candidates would work with Governor Andrew Cuomo, regulations for legal marijuana and whether to rename landmarks that bear the names of slave owners.
Aside from issues over crime, during the debate questions were asked of candidate Eric Adams after questions arose this week about where he resides.
New York City mayoral candidate Kathryn Garcia is pictures arriving at the debate
Former Sanitation Commissioner Kathryn Garcia called for an increased investment in mental health services: 'Police and mental health professionals need to engage upfront, so we prevent the crime from ever happening,' she said
On Wednesday, Adams invited reporters to his apartment in Brooklyn in order to prove that he lived there.
'You know what people are asking about,' Adams said. 'I live in Brooklyn. I live in Bedford-Stuyvesant. I am happy to be there, it is a beautiful community, that's where I live. It's a humble place; it's a blue collar place but I am a blue-collar candidate. I live in Brooklyn.'
Andrew Yang, who has been a frontrunners along with Adams, attacked him hard.
'Unfortunately his tour of the basement raised more questions than it answered for many New Yorkers, especially me,' he said.
Adam's responded with a fierce defense.
'I was asked by Mr. Yang to produce my EZ Pass, I did,' Adams said. 'He started to say, 'produce what type of milk you have in your fridge, produce what type of vegan cheese you have.' This is silly. I live in Bed-Stuy, I'm a Brooklynite and I'm proud to be a Brooklynite.'
The debate also discussed how candidates would work with Governor Andrew Cuomo and touched upon regulations for legal marijuana.
Candidate Scott Stringer was asked about a second allegation of sexual misconduct. He is pictured on Wednesday
The New York Times reported last week how a woman accused Stringer, pictured, of groping her and that he made unwanted sexual advances in 1992
Stringer was asked about sexual misconduct allegations against him — and claimed to have been misquoted in a New York Times article about a woman who claimed he kissed and groped her without her consent in 1992 when she was working as a waitress at a bar he managed
Candidate Scott Stringer was asked about a second allegation of sexual misconduct.
The New York Times reported last week how a woman accused Stringer of groping her and that he made unwanted sexual advances in 1992.
Weeks earlier, another woman who had worked unpaid on Stringer's 2001 public advocate campaign made similar allegations.
Stringer said the allegations are 'not true' and said that he was 'misquoted',
'I want to be held accountable to anyone who wishes the press or otherwise to investigate what took place 30 years or 20 years ago,' Stringer said.
New York City mayoral candidate Andrew Yang said he could 'work with 'anyone who's going to help us deliver for the people of New York' in relation to a question about the state's Governor
Andrew Yang brought up the issue of e-bikes and scooters, saying 'We do need to make sure that people aren't traveling at speeds that are going to be dangerous for families that are crossing the crosswalk.'
Stringer and Yang also clashed over Yang's experience and whether he would have the right approach to working with Cuomo.
Cuomo has a notoriously bad relationship with New York's current mayor, Bill de Blasio.
Yang said he could 'work with 'anyone who's going to help us deliver for the people of New York.'
'Your approach is naïve,' Stringer said. 'Albany will go after you. Albany will collapse you. You don't understand that the forces around the state do not want us to get the funding that we deserve.'
'The state needs the city, Scott. The city needs the state,' Yang said. 'It's easier to work with someone who, again, isn't trying to score political points (and) who just wants to get the job done. That's the kind of leadership that the city has been waiting for for quite some time.'
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June 11, 2021
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