ALBANY, N.Y (7 June, 2020): Governor Cuomo on Saturday praised New Yorkers for bringing down the rate of coronavirus infections — particularly here in the city, which begins a phased-in reopening Monday — while announcing relaxed restrictions for places of worship.
Temples, mosques and churches can begin holding services at 25% of capacity during Phase two of reopening. New York City is set to begin Phase one on Monday.
Looser restrictions have been made possible by the sharp reduction in coronavirus cases. Yesterday the state recorded just 35 deaths, the lowest since the pandemic hit.
“We’re going to open the valve more than we originally anticipated because the metrics are so good,” Cuomo said. He said that in New York City, the percentage of people testing positive for COVID-19 had dropped from 57 percent to two percent.
Cuomo also spoke about incidents of aggressive policing caught on video during recent protests. He suggested the state Attorney General, who is conducting a 30-day review of police actions during the widespread unrest, could override local police departments that do not take swift actions against abusive officers.
“A police officer who acts wrongfully will be called to task. Period,” Cuomo said. “Yeah, police have to do their jobs. But they don’t have the right to abuse, to hurt, to use unnecessary force. And they’re going to be held accountable.”
Cuomo applauded the decisions to suspend and prosecute Buffalo police officers seen in a video shoving an elderly man to the ground, and then doing nothing to assist him as blood spilled out of his head.
“I think there was criminal liability, from what i saw on the video,” he said. “We saw the video. What we saw was horrendous and disgusting, [and] I believe illegal.”
Asked about any instructions he’d given to local district attorneys, Cuomo said he’d only told them to prosecute looters. And he again referenced the NYPD’s response to widespread looting last weekend. Having faced some backlash for earlier criticizing the police, Cuomo said looting was the last thing anxious New Yorkers needed, adding: “Now they have to worry about rampant looting, out of control, and a police force that isn’t managed properly, and didn’t have the resources to stop the looting?”
Also Saturday, Cuomo said he was signing two executive orders:
One will allow commercial buildings to mandate temperature checks of anyone entering the building.
The other will allow instances of price gouging on personal protective equipment to be prosecuted.
_ Courtesy: NY1.com
