The NYPD ignored one of the key lessons of Sept. 11 by not sharing information with New Jersey law enforcement agencies when it conducted secret surveillance of Muslim communities, Gov. Chris Christie said Thursday.
The Republican governor's comments echoed remarks he made Wednesday night on a radio program, when he issued his harshest criticism yet of the NYPD's secret surveillance of Muslims in New Jersey's largest city and elsewhere. He said the department had a "masters of the universe" mentality."
At a briefing Thursday, the governor wouldn't weigh in on whether he thought civil rights were violated, saying that wasn't his job and that he would leave that to any agencies investigating the NYPD's intelligence operations.
"My view, politicians shouldn't be involved in that. Leave it to law enforcement," Christie said. "If there were any violations of law by the NYPD, I am sure the attorney general will take whatever steps he deems appropriate."
Nonetheless, Christie's latest comments drew praise from at least one Muslim leader in New Jersey, Aref Assaf, head of the Paterson-based American Arab Forum.
"I'm so gratified. I'm honored to be a resident of the state of New Jersey under his leadership," Assaf said. "He doesn't mince words; he was unambiguous about the incursion of the NYPD into our state without proper protocols."
Muslim leaders have been invited to a meeting Saturday in Trenton with state and federal law enforcement officials to discuss New Jersey's response to the NYPD surveillance operations.
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Assaf said Muslim leaders already have a good relationship with state and federal law enforcement so he isn't sure how valuable the meeting will be unless New Jersey Attorney General Jeff Chiesa, who is reviewing the NYPD's operations, announces a more formal investigation.
Cheisa wouldn't talk about the review or offer a timetable for issuing a finding.
Christie on Thursday again focused his criticism of the NYPD on what he said was a lack of coordination with New Jersey law enforcement.
"It seems to be an abandonment of the core lesson of 9/11," he said.
The governor said it can be dangerous if law enforcement agencies don't share information. In a poke at NYPD Commissioner Raymond Kelly, Christie said Kelly wouldn't want to have to explain if something went wrong because of a lack of coordination.
On the radio program, he had mocked the commissioner as "all knowing, all seeing."
Mayor Bloomberg has said New York officers are permitted to travel beyond the city borders to investigate cases. He has argued that the NYPD's actions have been constitutional and necessary in a city constantly under the shadow of a terrorist threat.
On Thursday, his office declined to comment on Christie's newest statements, referring back to the mayor's previous comments. The NYPD didn't respond to a request for comment Thursday.
Christie's remarks came in response to a series of stories by The Associated Press that detailed the monitoring or recommended surveillance of Muslims in New York and surrounding states, including New Jersey and Connecticut, by the NYPD. The AP also revealed that the NYPD secretly monitored the daily activities of Muslim college student groups across the Northeast.
