N.Y.'s Bloomberg Calls Out Philly on Murders

Big Apple mayor responds to New York Times editorial that New York could learn from Philly's stop-and-frisk reforms

New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg took a shot at safety in Philadelphia during an interview on New York television Thursday.

"Why would any rational person want to trade what we have here for situation in Philadelpha?" Bloomberg told NY 1. "More murders, higher crime. Is that what the Times wants?"

Bloomberg was responding to a New York Times editorial that suggested the Big Apple institute a stop-and-frisk policy more similar to the plan supported by Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter.

"Philadelphia is a great city but it has the highest murder rate of any of the 10 largest cities in the country," Bloomberg said. "And the number of murders is going up."

As of the end of the day Thursday, there were 140 homicides reported in Philly -- up 11 percent from the same date last year.

The Times mentioned that Philly’s stop-and-frisk policy was reformed after being challenged by the ACLU in 2010 as being racially biased. The suit was settled out of court.

"I don't think that the lawsuit that we had and the settling of that suit has led to any particular increase in crime," Nutter told NY1. "What leads to an increase in crime is people with bad behavior acting like idiots out on the streets."

Nutter deflected some of the controversy back on the Times rather than Bloomberg..

"I am here on the ground in Philadelphia," Nutter told NY1. "With every respect to the New York Times, they don’t live in Philadelphia."

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