NEW YORK – Councilwoman Anastasia Robertson left the City Council meeting Thursday night as a police union leader accused her of inciting a crowd against two police officers Saturday.

“You can’t talk about public safety and assist in public unrest,” Sgt. Thomas Hoffman, president of the Troy Police Benevolent Association, said in calling for the city Ethics Commission to investigate Robertson.
The situation came as the North Central and Lansingburgh neighborhoods in Robertson’s 2nd Council District have been rocked by shootings.
Hoffman said Robertson, an African-American council member, told the white officers: “This is why the black community doesn’t respect the police. You only go after black people.”
Hoffman’s remarks came after Robertson apologized at the meeting for comments she posted on the Internet regarding race war, police interaction with blacks and spelling America with a letter “k” instead of a “c.”
“I do recognize my word choice was unfortunate and offensive to some,” Robertson said. “That was not my intent.”
Robertson said she was speaking as an individual and not as a member of the Troy City Council.
“I’m an African-American,” Robertson said. “My experience may be very different than some people.”
Robertson could not be reached for comment after she left the meeting at City Hall.
But Robertson’s apology did not sit well with some city residents.
“An elected official should always be cognizant of their words,” Sharon Lynn said.
“An Internet code of conduct needs to be enacted,” said Lynn, who described Robertson’s remarks as “appalling” for a city official.
Then Rosemary Coles condemned Robertson for failing to represent her district in getting a site contaminated with asbestos cleaned up.
“She has not worked for the people in her district,” Coles said. The district includes the city’s poorest areas in North Central.
The incident Hoffman referred to occurred late Saturday afternoon in Lansingburgh where two officers responded to a domestic complaint involving a white woman and a black woman. The white woman fled, leaving police talking to the other woman, Hoffman said.
At that time, a crowd including Robertson, gathered and were yelling at, spitting on and recording the officers with cell phones, Hoffman said.
Additional officers were dispatched to assist with the crowd. (read more)