Feature

How to Care for An Angry Mob

Kelly has not determined where demonstrators will be allowed to gather once the convention begins, either. “We don’t have real numbers yet, and a lot will depend on the political climate in August,” he says. “Current issues have an impact on turnout.”

There will be frozen zones created around the Garden—probably 31st and 33rd streets, at least, will be kept open and free of demonstrators. “We try to operate,” Kelly says, “on the general principle that the protesters have sight and sound of their target location.”

There will also be vehicle checkpoints around the perimeter of the Garden manned with heavy weapons, dogs, and portable Delta barriers, which are enormous metal contraptions that lie almost flat in the road and can be raised very quickly with the flip of a switch. They are substantial enough to stop a large truck.

Though Miami police chief John Timoney (a former New York deputy commissioner) has been criticized for his use of heavy-handed tactics with protesters, the NYPD will mimic at least one of his measures. “Timoney used a lot of cops on bicycles in Miami,” McManus says. “This provided excellent mobility without being hampered by the size of a car. For the convention, we’ll have the largest mobile field force we’ve ever used. They’ll be on scooters, bicycles, horses, and in vans and patrol cars. The scooters and bicycles will enable us to respond quickly to events like spontaneous traffic disruptions, destruction of property, or disturbances at any of the hotels.”

The department will not use closed pens to herd protesters; they have been an irritant in the past. However, interlocking barriers will be used when deemed necessary to control large numbers of people and to allow vehicles to get through. For the rally in March, organizers told the cops it would make a big difference if there were more openings in the barriers—so they wouldn’t have to walk all the way to the end of a block to get out. As a result, the NYPD added breaks in the middle of the block as well.

McManus says the department is still evaluating various means of “less-than-lethal force” for use if there were a critical problem with the demonstrators—Timoney had tear gas, rubber bullets, and armored vehicles ready in Miami.

The NYPD’s “disorder-control strategy” revolves around the use of arrest teams. These units will consist of a sergeant and eight or ten uniformed officers, each of whom has a designated function.

The key is to isolate the troublemakers, arrest them swiftly and efficiently, and not involve the other protesters. “Otherwise, what can happen is that things can quickly get out of control,” one cop told me. “If a protester with no intention of doing anything unlawful gets bumped or pushed or knocked over when cops are trying to arrest someone, they can get caught up in the moment and suddenly become disruptive.”

But none of the brass I talked to is worried about push coming to shove. “Will there be some demonstrators that show up bent on destruction?” Kelly asks. “Probably. But we’ll be ready to deal with that.

“We handle 600 events a year below 59th Street,” he says. “We’re in this business. It’s what we do, and I feel pretty good about it.”