NYPD is tossing some taxpayer funds around to pay for wrongfully arresting people who were protesting police abuses, but they aren't admitting they did anything wrong. NYPD famously settles claims of abuse for vast amounts of money paid for by the people they abuse. It is a great system for them.
All the footage of people being unjustly pepper sprayed or far worse means nothing except the City budget takes another hit.
The NYPD responded as it almost always does when its authority is even mildly challenged. It fought back, proving the point of demonstrators while NYPD officers violated rights repeatedly. When rights are violated, lawsuits follow. And the NYPD is now (disgracefully) exiting a lawsuit brought by wrongfully arrested protesters by (1) not admitting it has done anything wrong, and (2) graciously allowing New York City taxpayers to cover the costs of its misdeeds. Elizabeth Nolan Brown has the latest on this litigation for Reason:
"New York City has reached another record-setting settlement with people arrested in summer 2020 racial justice protests. The city has agreed to pay $13 million collectively to people arrested during 18 protests in Brooklyn and Manhattan—an agreement that amounts to nearly $10,000 per person arrested.
[…]
Neither the city nor the New York City Police Department (NYPD) has admitted to wrongdoing in conjunction with the settlement, which comes as part of a federal class action lawsuit (Sow, et al. v. City of New York, et al.)."
That's the way it works for the general public. The government refuses to admit it's done anything wrong and it casually walks out of courtrooms, tossing the bill over its shoulder to be added to the public's tab.
