Cops will not be allowed to take any time off during a four-day period starting tomorrow, in order to prepare for the possibility of widespread street protests stemming from the Sean Bell verdict, The Post has learned.
The NYPD issued the special notice to all precincts and borough commands earlier this week in preparation for massive demonstrations – and potential rioting – that may occur once the verdict is handed down tomorrow morning in the case of three undercover detectives on trial for firing 50 shots at Bell.
MORE: Bloomy to Bell Fiance: We Will Make Sure It Doesn’t Happen Again
As part of the sweeping security plan, the Police Department denied all vacation time requests put in by any cop seeking either tomorrow, the weekend or Monday off – unless it was already part of a regularly scheduled day off, according to law-enforcement sources.
With the large number of uniformed cops at its disposal, the department can deploy cops to potential trouble spots across the city, in the event a rally were to get out of hand or for other unforeseen events.
Cops could also see their shifts extended as part of the beefed-up security measures.
Detectives Michael Oliver and Gescard Isnora are charged with manslaughter for firing 31 and 11shots respectively, while Detective Marc Cooper is charged with reckless endangerment.
If Queens Supreme Court Judge Arthur Cooperman acquits the detectives for unleashing the barrage that killed Bell on Nov. 25, 2006, demonstrations could resemble those that followed the 2000 acquittal of the four white cops who fired 41 shots at unarmed African immigrant Amadou Diallo.
At the time, about 100 people were arrested for participating in various violent protests throughout the city.
The move on the part of the NYPD to deny cops vacation time whenever it deems it needs the extra manpower is a regular occurrence.
A similar edict was issued on the eve of Pope Benedict XVI’s three-day visit to the city last week.
The Post reported two weeks ago that the NYPD would flood Queens with 1,000 extra cops the moment Cooperman renders his verdict.
The additional cops will be ready to patrol several areas, including the neighborhood around the Queens County Courthouse in Kew Gardens, club Kalua, the Jamaica strip joint near where Bell was killed, and along several major streets.
Although he has not commented on any specific security measures, NYPD spokesman Paul Browne said the department does not expect any serious trouble.
Unlike the Diallo shooting, which sparked racial tensions across the city, there have been only peaceful marches over the past year in connection with Bell’s slaying.
The mostly small rallies have taken place on Liverpool Street, the site of the barrage, and prominently featured Rev. Al Sharpton, Bell’s fiancée, Nicole Paultre-Bell, as well as Joseph Guzman and Trent Benefield, who were shot in the 50-bullet fusillade but survived.