Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg Apologizes For Stop and Frisk Police Policy

Former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg is changing his stance on his longstanding support of the controversial “stop and frisk” policy ahead of a potential Democratic run for president.

Michael Bloomberg addresses Stop and Frisk policy

While addressing the Christian Cultural Church in East New York, Bloomberg says the policy that often discriminated and led to detaining a disproportionate amount of Blacks and Latinos that he “can’t change history” but he now realizes “I was wrong”.

Michael Bloomberg says if anyone was false stopped by the police, “I apologize”.

About the policy

The “stop and frisk” policy gave police wide authority to detain people they suspected of committing a crime.

Bloomberg aggressively pursued the tactic when he first took over as mayor in 2002. The practiced reached a peak of 685,000 cases in 2011, during Bloomberg’s third and final term.

Black and Latino New Yorkers comprised 54% and 34% of stops that year, according to the New York Civil Liberties Union.

Bloomberg told the congregation Sunday that he wants to earn back the trust of Black and Latino communities.

Unconstitutional

In 2013, a judge ruled the practice had been enforced in an unconstitutional way and a federal monitor was appointed to oversee reforms.

While Bloomberg railed at the decision at the time, the NYPD began reducing use of stop-and-frisk, an effort championed by Mayor de Blasio when he took office in 2014.