Since his indictment, on criminal charges related to a hush-money scandal, Donald Trump has wasted no time in attacking the "witch hunt" he claims to be facing, criticizing Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg and President Joe Biden in the process.
Trump, the first former or current U.S. president to face criminal charges, has maintained his innocence, calling the affair "Election interference at the highest level in history."
Although he has maintained his line of attack toward Bragg's investigation, the former president recently made a swipe at the City of New York, suggesting tens of thousands of cops had been brought in to manage the interest surrounding his arraignment in Manhattan.
The Claim
A tweet by conservative commentator Nick Sortor, posted on April 19, 2023, viewed 18,000 times, included a video of Donald Trump claiming that "New York City... brought in 38,000 NYPD officers".
Trump said: "Failed District Attorney Alvin Bragg shut down New York City, brought in 38,000 NYPD officers, and will spend an estimated $200 million in New York City funds for something that everybody says isn't even a crime. It's nothing and yet you have murderers walking all over the street, drug dealers, you have everybody walking all over the street, criminals, violent criminals."
The Facts
The tweet by Sortor refers to Trump's indictment, although Trump was not required to visit New York to be criminally charged initially, only for the arraignment on April 4, 2023.
While there was reportedly a police response following the indictment, Trump's mention of a "shut down" of New York indicates he was referring to the date of the arraignment.
According to The Hill, officers were first put on alert after the indictment on March 30, 2023. Although the arraignment gathered more crowds, protesters had arrived in New York after Trump was charged initially.
In any case, the statement Trump made about 38,000 New York cops requires some context.
Trump's claim that such a high number of NYPD officers were "brought in" was based on memos and sourcing from a number of media outlets including CBS, and Inside Edition.
One New York police source told CBS: "The whole police department's on standby just in case we need more police officers to respond to the scene in case it gets out of hand."
While that may mean all officers were required to work when the arraignment happened on April 4, it does not mean that they were all assigned to proactively police the event, as the clip (particularly as Trump also mentions a New York "shut down" and "murderers walking all over the street") may appear to suggest.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams and the NYPD later refused to say whether the full force would be deployed on the day of the arraignment, reported USA Today.
Furthermore, the NYPD does not have 38,000 officers. While some resources, such as the City of New York, suggest the total number is 36,000, with an additional 19,000 civilian employees, NYPD demographic figures state there are 33,783 uniformed officers.
The force has received media attention in the past six months for the number of officers who have quit; a March report for Fox 5 New York claimed that a record number of cops have resigned in 2023.
Newsweek has contacted the NYPD's Office of the Deputy Commissioner, Public Information, to clarify current force figures and its operational strategy on the day of the arraignment.
In any case, Trump appears to have both exaggerated the number of police on duty that day and, in the context of his other comments, may have misleadingly suggested that this entire force would police his visit.
Despite Trump's criticism, news reports indicate that his 2024 presidential campaign and joint fundraising committee saw "turbocharged" donations from supporters as a result of his indictment, a possibility that many suspected.
According to Politico, both entities raised $15.4 million, nearly matching the $18.8 million raised in the first quarter of 2023.
Newsweek has contacted a Donald Trump representative via email for comment.
The Ruling
Needs Context
In the context of the clip, in which Trump mentioned a "shut down" of New York, his claim that 38,000 NYPD officers were "brought in" may create the impression that many cops were to police the arraignment in Manhattan.
While media outlets reported that all officers received a prompt to arrive in uniform, there is no evidence that as many as Trump suggested were actively involved in monitoring the surrounding scene.
Furthermore, there aren't 38,000 NYPD officers in the force. Recent data available from the force suggest the number is less than 34,000.
FACT CHECK BY Newsweek's Fact Check team
