NYPD commissioner apologizes for racial bias and excessive force

New York Police Department (NYPD) Commissioner Dermot Shea on Thursday apologized for the department’s racial bias and use of excessive force amid ongoing protests against police brutality of black Americans and the death of George Floyd.  

“I am sorry,” Shea said at a press conference Thursday where footage of police officers using force against protesters was shown.  

“…So for our part in the damage to civility, for our part in racial bias, in excessive force, unacceptable behavior, unacceptable language and many other mistakes, we are human. I am sorry. Are you?”

WATCH LIVE as @NYPDShea provides an update to recent events. https://t.co/zwH2JDfsTk

— NYPD NEWS (@NYPDnews) June 4, 2020

New York City saw some of the largest protests in the U.S. following the death of George Floyd, an unarmed black man who died in Minneapolis police custody last week.

Shea said at the press conference that the NYPD has caught people from out of town coming to the city to incite violence. He also said three police officers were hurt while patrolling for looting in Brooklyn.

The NYPD has faced scrutiny in recent days over its handling of protests in the city, including criticism of one video showing two police cruisers lurching through protesters and another video of an officer pushing a woman to the ground.

“Sometimes even the best, and the NYPD is the goddamn best police department in this country, but sometimes even the best fall down,” Shea said.