New York’s next police commissioner took a break for a little story time.
With cameras flashing and reporters scribbling, William Bratton opened a big picture book like he was in front of a kindergarten class.
“We must always remember that when you see a policeman he is your friend,” Bratton read from the book. “He is there to protect you.“
Bratton, who was named today by Mayor-elect Bill de Blasio to replace outgoing Police Commissioner Ray Kelly, was sharing an excerpt from the book he said inspired his love of police work.
It all started at the local library.
A 9-year-old Bill Bratton checked out “Your Police,” from a library in his Boston neighborhood, and the rest, as they say is history.
“I checked this thing out so often I don’t think anyone else in Boston ever saw it,” he quipped.
The book, written and illustrated in 1956 by the late George Zaffo, gives youngsters an inside look at the personnel and equipment of the NYPD.
Bratton who has been the top cop in Boston and Los Angeles, has carried a copy of the book to every job he has had.
In his own memoir, “The Turnaround: How America’s Top Cop Reversed the Crime Epidemic,” Bratton describes the children’s tome as “one of the most influential books in my life.”