Not looking for tit for tat

To the editor:

(re: “A different memory,” March 29)

In his letter to the editor, Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz accuses me of “an incontrovertible falsehood” in an opinion piece I had published on March 22.

I and the two other members of the North Bronx Racial Justice coalition who met at length with Mr. Dinowitz in his office on Dec. 19 stand by our statement. When pressed during a 45-minute meeting, Mr. Dinowitz made clear that though he would not have chosen the precise words that Deputy Inspector Terence O’Toole used following the arrest of Alfred Burns, he made very clear, repeatedly, that neither the conduct of the arrest nor Mr. O’Toole’s subsequent public statements were of significant concern to him.

After he stated that he would not have used Mr. O’Toole’s words, and then again at the end of the meeting, we specifically asked if he would meet with Mr. O’Toole about this matter and report back to us about the meeting. He flatly declined. 

If Mr. Dinowitz shared any concerns with Mr. O’Toole at the Community Board 8 meeting, as he claims, he chose not to share that information publicly, or with members of our coalition.

We agree with Mr. Dinowitz that facts are important. We agree that police conduct is extremely serious. We are not, as he implies, seeking to push some “political need” to “divide the community.” His maligning our motivations and calling us liars suggests that he indeed does not take our concerns seriously.

At many public meetings, Mr. O’Toole, Mr. Dinowitz, Councilman Andrew Cohen and members of CB8 have been given repeated opportunities to express their views of the statements by Mr. O’Toole — statements which we and the New York City Public Advocate’s office believe endanger public safety. They have failed to do so at every opportunity.

Worse, Mr. Dinowitz has now taken to saying that the many local residents and clergy members who are members of the North Bronx Racial Justice, and have repeatedly raised their concerns in the pages of this paper and at community meetings, are acting in bad faith. 

We call this shameful. We are not interested in a tit for tat. We are seeking responsiveness and accountability by our representatives, and the deputy inspector of the 50th Precinct.

Jennifer Scarlott

The author speaks on behalf of North Bronx Racial Justice.