Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Cory Booker on Sunday defended his record as mayor of Newark, despite disproportionate policing in the city during his tenure.
CNN host Dana Bash discussed the Department of Justice investigation into the Newark Police Department with Booker, and she noted a report by Justice Department officials that black residents were at least two-and-a-half times more likely than white residents to be stopped or arrested.
Bash quoted the Justice Department report in her interview, saying, “This undeniable experience of being disproportionately affected by the NPD’s unconstitutional policing helps explain the community distrust and cynicism that undermines effective policing in Newark.”
“Do you take any responsibility for the way this policing hurt black residents of Newark under your watch?” Bash asked the senator.
“I actually took responsibility,” Booker said. “I inherited a police department that had decades of challenges with accountability, of challenges along racial lines, and we actually stepped up to deal with the problem.”
The senator went on to say that he was proud of his criminal justice record as mayor.
“I’m one of the few senators who have put forth legislation to create more police accountability, more transparency, so that we can begin to deal with some of the deep, racial issues that we have that permeate not just policing but everything from prosecutorial actions to our criminal justice system as a whole,” Booker added.
Booker served as the 38th mayor of Newark from 2006 to 2013, when he won a special election to become New Jersey’s junior senator.
