For the second time in New York City Mayor Bill De Blasio's tenure, police officers of the NYPD turned their back to him in a show of contempt Tuesday at a funeral for a police officer.
Police were outraged when De Blasio chose to fly off to protest the G20 summit rather than stay home and attend an evening vigil honoring slain NYPD Officer Miosotis Familia at the 46th Precinct station house.
Familia was killed in what many described as an "assassination" when 34-year-old Alexander Bonds walked to her patrol car and shot her in the head without warning. He was chased down and killed by police.
Relations between the NYPD and De Blasio had already been strained after he appeared to support Black Lives Matter protests against the police.
The killer, Bonds, had posted anti-police rhetoric on social media prior to the assassination, prompting many to conclude that he had been radicalized by the kind of narratives pushed by Black Lives Matter.
“Mr. Mayor, you didn’t have to travel to Germany for a protest," said Sergeants Benevolent Association President Ed Mullins. "All you had to do is speak in front of the men and women of the NYPD.”
Video from social media shows the police turning back around after De Blasio finished his address at the funeral.
VIDEO: Mayor de Blasio finishes speaking and cops at #MiosotisFamilia's funeral who had turned their backs on him turn back around. pic.twitter.com/38325VTxO0
— Matthew Chayes (@chayesmatthew) July 11, 2017
His actions drew wide condemnation, including that from the New York Post, whose cover declared him a "Deutsch bag," explaining, "Mayor feeds his ego in Germany after fleeing a city in mourning."
The New York Daily News reported that hundreds of officers turned away from De Blasio.
