Swing-vote City Councilman to push for NYPD oversight
AP JENNIFER PELTZ
NEW YORK -- As a City Hall faceoff over creating new oversight for police heads for a make-or-break vote later this month, a lawmaker who had been seen as a potentially crucial swing vote made clear Wednesday he's standing by his support for the legislation.
City Councilman Erik Dilan scheduled a news conference Thursday to elaborate on his views, ahead of a veto override vote expected Aug. 22.
Dilan's declaration could represent a setback for Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who has been trying to persuade lawmakers to back off the measures. They would establish an inspector general for police and more latitude for discriminatory policing lawsuits - together, the most aggressive moves in years to give outsiders more openings to scrutinize and challenge the workings of the nation's biggest police force.
Supporters say the provisions would increase police accountability and foster public trust, which they say has eroded amid the New York Police Department's heavy use of the stop-and-frisk tactic and its widespread spying on Muslims - surveillance that was revealed in stories by The Associated Press. But Bloomberg, Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly and other critics say the measures would hamper a force that has worked to wrestle crime down to historic lows.
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