Ed Mullins, President of the Sergeants Benevolent Association in New York, says Baltimore Police Chief Anthony Batts and Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake should step down.
In a recent interview with The Rita Cosby Show on WABC radio, Mullins said there is a phenomenal difference between how New York City handled protests and how Baltimore handled them. He added that New York City has many more police officers than Baltimore, and that New York City also saw violence and had police assaulted.
The difference, he pointed out, was the burning down of buildings and stores being looted while Baltimore police offers stood by. He thinks that order came from the top. “Ultimately we all believe that she had a standby policy,” he says of Mayor Rawlings-Blake.
“My heart goes out the Baltimore Police officers because they were forced to be in a situation, which they had no control of and the mayor herself should step down,” said Mullins. “I don’t blame the police officers by any means, but I certainly blame the Police Chief and the Mayor. The people who live there should hold them all accountable.”
Mullins said the people elect the Mayor, but the Chief is a police officer that swore to uphold the law.
“The chief is a sworn police officer, sworn to uphold the law. If the mayor gave an order, to not arrest her for stealing, will the chief follow that order? She broke the law,” Mullins explained. “His obligation is to enforce the law, and contrary to him being the chief, who works directly for the mayor.”
Mullins said the Chief should have the courage to enforce the law, regardless of what Mayor Rawlings-Blake ordered.
“There’s times when you must disobey an order. And when people are losing millions and millions of dollars worth of property, and being put out of business, you have to concede it to say, that, the Mayor’s order is wrong! And I’m not going to let the law be violated,” said Mullins.
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