Mayor Adams said Thursday he plans to sit down with embattled Brooklyn Councilwoman Susan Zhuang in hopes of finding a “resolution” in the wake of her arrest for allegedly biting an NYPD chief during a raucous protest against a homeless shelter development in her district.
While he called Zhuang’s alleged attack on the cop “unfortunate,” the mayor argued in a string of early morning media appearances that she’s typically a “real partner” on law enforcement issues and that he thereby wants to try to mediate the fraught situation.
“I’m going to reach out to the Council person and sit down with her and try to resolve this issue, but it was really unfortunate,” he said on 1010WINS. “She has always been an advocate for law enforcement, but these issues are extremely, extremely emotional, and we have to find ways to solve them without any form of violence.”
The mayor, a retired NYPD captain, didn’t elaborate on what form of resolution he’s hoping to help find for Zhuang, a conservative Democrat who has styled herself as a pro-police politician.
Zhuang’s spokesman declined to comment.
Zhuang, a first-term lawmaker who’s politically aligned with the mayor’s moderate sensibilities, bit the chief during a chaotic protest early Wednesday morning against the construction of a 32-room homeless shelter for single men in Bensonhurst. She and other protesters say the development would jeopardize public safety in the area, which currently has no homeless shelters.
After her arrest, Zhuang was charged with felony assault and several other counts before being released without bail.
After the NYPD released a photo of a deep gash left on the chief’s arm from Zhuang’s alleged chomp, a number of her colleagues in the Council issued statements condemning her.