Did the police overreact during election celebrations in Williamsburg?

Last night spontaneous celebrations spilled out into the streets all over the country and all over New York. But in Williamsburg, police arrested three, and there have been many accusations of excessive force.







Here is some video of the evening:






Brooklyn Vegan has some great photos of the revelry and the crackdown.

The NYT story notes that there were no arrests made at celebrations anywhere else in the city. These situations are always tough for the police—sometimes their presence (especially in riot gear) can escalate a situation in and of itself. I was on Driggs and North 6th, and traffic was getting through—the police claim that that was what caused them to act. The situation certainly didn't seem more out of hand than, say, the marathon. But that's just my opinion. I hope the precinct makes an effort to look into any serious allegations of excessive force, and that those who did experience anything report it.

Photo by Aaron Edwards, via a Creative Commons license.