NEW YORK CITY — The Los Angeles Chief of Police fired back at Police Commissioner Bill Bratton Tuesday after the NYPD boss — and former head of the LAPD — ripped his old city for closing schools over a phony terrorist threat.
"I think it's irresponsible to criticize that decision at this point," LAPD chief Charlie Beck said in a statement that seemed directly aimed at Bratton.
“It is very easy in hindsight to criticize a decision… when you have no responsibility for the outcome. All of us have the same goal in mind — we want to keep our kids safe."
The L.A. chief's remarks came in response to criticism from Bratton — who headed the LAPD from 2002 until 2009 — over a decision to close more than 900 schools, affecting 700,000 students.
Los Angeles had received “a credible threat” of violence involving backpacks and packages left on school grounds, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Bratton said later that New York City had received the same threat — but that it was clearly a hoax.
“L.A. is a huge school system — 600-square-mile school system,” Bratton said during a news conference at the police academy in College Point in Queens.
“And to disrupt the daily schedules of half a million school children, their parents, day care, buses, based on an anonymous email… I think it was a significant overreaction.”
Classes remained open at New York City schools Tuesday after officials quickly determined the threat to be a hoax.
Bratton and Beck have had an amicable relationship in the past, with the two recently betting on the Mets-Dodgers playoff series.
