NEW YORK CITY — The city police commissioner appeared on national TV on Sunday to issue a dire warning about a federal judge's ruling that the department must reform its stop-and-frisk tactic.
"I think, no question about it, violent crime will go up," NYPD head Raymond Kelly told David Gregory on "Meet the Press" when asked what would happen if the strategy is abandoned.
The commissioner echoed earlier statements that he made after Judge Shira Scheindlin ruled on Aug. 12 that the way the city is currently using the tactic violates the civil rights of black and Hispanic New Yorkers.
"The judge indicted the entire New York City Police Department — 35,000 officers — of racially profiling on the flimsiest of evidence," he said on the national political show.
The commissioner also warned that Scheindlin's decision cannot be allowed to stand lest it be used to undermine the stop-and-frisk tactic in other cities.
"This case has to be appealed because it will be taken as a template," he said.
Kelly also took issue with the judge's pilot program to wire cops in certain precincts with cameras.
"When do you have the camera on? When do you turn them off?" he asked Bob Schieffer on "Face The Nation."
Do you have them on during a domestic dispute? Do you have them on when someone comes to give you confidential information? All these issues have to be answered."
But Kelly's tenure at the NYPD might not last long enough for him to see the outcome of the battle.
Schieffer asked Kelly if President Barack Obama had reached out to him about replacing Janet Napolitano as the head of the Department of Homeland Security.
"I spent some time in Washington," Kelly said. "I know it's wise to keep my mouth shut at this time."
