New York City Mayor Eric Adams joined New York City Corporation Counsel Sylvia Hinds-Radix, and Police Commissioner Edward Caban on Tuesday, Sept. 5, to announce that the City had reached a settlement relating to the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests. They also announced that the NYPD has implemented new practices to better address what were described as the unique challenges they say arise during spontaneous protests to keep New Yorkers safe, and to respect every person’s first amendment rights to free speech.

 

They said the new four-tiered approach to handling protests is codified in a legal agreement stemming from lawsuits filed against the City of New York during the Black Lives Matter protests of 2020. They said the approach lays out what were described as “clear protocols for engaging with protesters, better training for police officers, and specific guidelines for arrests at each tier.”

“The right to peaceful protest is a fundamental part of American freedom, and the right to public safety is essential for our city to function — balancing these two important rights is one of this administration’s core missions,” said Adams. “I spent my career fighting for police reform and accountability, and now as mayor, our administration is committed to improving our policies to keep New Yorkers safe and protect their civil liberties.”

 

He added, “Today’s agreement, stemming from the Black Lives Matter protests in 2020, sets new protocols and policies in place for the NYPD when responding to spontaneous protests as we ensure that we are both protecting public safety and respecting protesters’ First Amendment rights. This agreement is the result of a collaborative process that seeks to build consensus, balance safety with justice, and protect protesters, bystanders, and law enforcement personnel.”

 

City officials said the reforms which are codified by the agreement and which were negotiated by the New York City Department of Law, the NYPD, the Office of New York Attorney General Letitia James, the New York Civil Liberties Union, The Legal Aid Society and more, will allow the NYPD to better calibrate its response based on specific conditions at each demonstration, ensuring it can enforce the law while protecting lawful free expression.

They said the approach combines multiple law enforcement strategies, including the use of more community affairs officers to liaise and de-escalate situations with protesters, the presence of patrol officers to enforce traffic laws and direct crowds, and the deployment of specialized units, including the Strategic Response Group (SRG), “as necessary” to ensure public safety. They said the agreement also establishes a collaborative committee that will evaluate the NYPD’s response to 12 protests over the next three years.

 

Hinds-Radix said the rights guaranteed by the first amendment are what allow the voices of over 8 million New Yorkers to be heard. “While we acknowledge these rights, there must be a balance between what is a protest and what is breaking the law,” she said. “In a world where social media sparks spontaneous assembly, we must be prepared to adapt to these changing times. This settlement acknowledges the work the NYPD is committed to doing to ensure that the voices of New Yorkers can be heard in a safe and peaceful manner.”

Tiered Approach to Policing Demonstrations and Protests

City officials said each tier defines NYPD protocols and practices for engaging with protesters based on conditions on the ground. The approach allows the NYPD to move progressively from Tier 1 to Tier 4, or begin its strategic response at Tier 3, “if necessary.”

• They said Tier 1 is used for a peaceful protest. Under Tier 1, the NYPD will temporarily accommodate peaceful protests passing through the streets or sidewalks. They said community affairs officers can liaise with the protesters while the NYPD retains the ability to use patrol officers to enforce traffic laws and direct crowds.

 

• They said Tier 2 is used when NYPD officials believe that illegal activity may be about to occur [in their estimation] or the protest is going to block critical infrastructure. They said the NYPD can station additional officers, including the SRG, in the vicinity of the protest in anticipation of the need for law enforcement intervention.

 

• They said Tier 3 takes effect once there is probable cause that an individual has committed a crime. They said the NYPD will deploy enough officers to address the individuals breaking the law. They said specialized units, such as the SRG, may be deployed as necessary in this tier, they said.

 

• They said Tier 4 commences when the protest must end. They said it will be activated when either (1) protesters try to enter or block entry to sensitive locations or (2) crimes are so widespread that de-escalation and/or targeted enforcement has not worked or cannot work. They said, for this tier to be activated, the only viable option is to end the protest. They said before ending the protest, the NYPD must issue dispersal orders to warn the crowd, point out exit points, and identify a location where a protest could continue, if feasible.

 

Three-Year Collaborative Committee to Evaluate Tiered Approach

City officials said that under the agreement, the NYPD will adopt training procedures for this new tiered approach, and that thereafter, a collaborative committee will be formed, consisting of attorneys for the plaintiffs, and including the Office of the New York Attorney General, as well as the New York City Department of Law, the NYPD, police unions, and the New York City Department of Investigation (DOI) which, they said, will serve as chair of the committee.

 

They said the committee will meet over three years on a regular basis to review the NYPD’s implementation of the terms of the agreement, including the effectiveness of the tiered approach in practice. They said DOI will review 12 protests, ten chosen by the plaintiffs and two by the defendants, and file periodic progress reports with the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, where the suits were originally filed. They added that DOI will also issue reports at 18 months and 30 months, as well as a final report at month 36.

 

As reported, on Friday, Sept. 1, a protest against police culminated outside the 52nd Precinct after around 30 protesters marched to the stationhouse from 2505 Aqueduct Avenue in Fordham Manor, where scooter rider, Eric Duprey, had been fatally struck with a picnic cooler tossed by an NYPD sergeant, and died at the scene on Wednesday, Aug. 23. [The sergeant was not stationed at the 52nd Precinct but with the Bronx Narcotics Squad.]

 

As reported, Duprey’s death is being investigated by the New York State Attorney General’s office. Duran has been suspended without pay pending the investigation. Black Lives Matter for Greater NY has called for murder charges to be brought against the sergeant in relation to the incident.

 

Duran became a police officer in 2010, was promoted to sergeant in 2018, and sergeant detective in 2022. According to his disciplinary record listed by the NYPD, there is one allegation recorded dated July 21, 2023. No further details are available in relation to the incident. According to the same police file, he has been recognized for “excellent police duty” at various stages over the course of his career. We’ve also contacted the Civilian Complaints Review Board for more details about Duran’s disciplinary history.

 

During the rally, protesters burned flags and police made at least one arrest. Norwood News has reached out to the NYPD for more details on the reason for the arrest and will update this story upon receipt of a response.

 

As reported, protestors and family members of Raul de la Cruz also rallied outside the 52nd Precinct in Norwood on Friday, April 7, demanding the release of the names of the two officers involved in the police-involved shooting in Kingsbridge Heights on Sunday, March 26, of de la Cruz, an emotionally disturbed man who had been armed with a kitchen knife on the day of his shooting.

 

Meanwhile, in the context of the announcement regarding the new approach to spontaneous protests, Caban said that during the summer of 2020, the frustrations of a global pandemic, a tragic killing, and “the use of” spontaneous demonstrations drew people [to the streets] from all over the country, “some with good intentions and some with bad.”

He added, “This presented many unique challenges for officers, who did their best to protect people’s rights to peaceful expression while addressing acts of lawlessness. Now, the NYPD has re-envisioned its policies for policing protests to deal with these unique scenarios. This agreement represents the department’s commitment to continually improving to ensure the public remains safe and individual rights are protected.”

 

Editor’s Note: In an earlier version of this story, it was stated that Sgt. Erik Duran was stationed at the 52nd Precinct. In fact, this was not the case. He was stationed with the Bronx Narcotics Unit. The story has since been updated. We apologize for this error.