Man Mistakenly Arrested Meets de Blasio, Bratton

Former tennis pro James Blake, who was thrown to the ground by a plainclothes policeman outside a hotel and mistakenly arrested, emerged from a meeting with the mayor and police commissioner on Monday saying they were on the same page about the need for lasting change.

“We’re not looking for a quick lawsuit,” Blake said after a meeting he described as very productive. “We’re not looking for anything that’s going to be a quick and easy solution. We’re looking for a lasting, positive impact on the city and on the police force.”

Blake said the big theme of the meeting with Mayor Bill de Blasio and police Commissioner William Bratton was “having an impact that’s going to affect even generations.”

Blake was misidentified by a cooperating witness as being part of a scheme to sell fraudulently purchased merchandise before he was tackled and handcuffed on Sept. 9, police said. He was mistaken for a crime suspect who looks just like him, they said.

The arresting officer, James Frascatore, was placed on desk duty.

This article appeared in print on page 4 of the September 25th, 2015 edition of Hamodia.