NYC Mayor de Blasio Doesn’t Want to Make Chokeholds Illegal

Mayor Bill de Blasio has hit some bumps in recent months in his relationship with the New York City Police Force.

So Tuesday’s news that he would veto a bill, cooked up by the New York City Council, that would outlaw the use of chokeholds by NYPD officers could be read as a peace-making gesture on the mayor’s part (AP via Chron.com):

The mayor’s spokesman said Tuesday that de Blasio believes the NYPD internal policy is the best way to regulate the practice.

Chokeholds are banned by the NYPD.

The death of Eric Garner last summer, which occurred after the asthmatic Staten Island man was put in a chokehold during a confrontation with NYPD Officer Daniel Pantaleo, and the protests following the incident provided the impetus for the New York City Council’s proposed legislation.

–Posted by Kasia Anderson