NEW YORK - Calling it a much better night than two days ago, Mayor Bill de Blasio said the city's response Tuesday night amid the ongoing protests over the death of George Floyd had a few tense moments but ended on a much calmer note.
The mayor says while there were reported incidents of looting and violence, they were "rare."
"Last night we took a step forward of moving out of this difficult period, we went over the facts last night, we still have more work to do," De Blasio said.
The mayor says the decision to corral thousands of people on the Manhattan Bridge Tuesday night was "the right decision", adding there was a curfew in effect with no plans to let people march into Manhattan from Brooklyn.
Both the mayor and Police Commissioner Dermot Shea say the city's earlier curfew on Tuesday appeared to make a difference.
Tuesday's curfew started three hours earlier at 8 p.m. and ended at 5 a.m.
The curfew will remain in effect through Sunday.
Mayor de Blasio says restrictions on transportation and traffic will continue through Sunday as well.
The NYPD set up vehicle checkpoints Tuesday night that limited traffic south of 96th Street.
Essential workers and local residents are allowed to pass through.
Roughly 200 people were arrested Tuesday night, although the NYPD did not confirm if they were all arrested in protests, for breaking curfew, or looting.
The NYPD also did not specify if more people were taken into custody for breaking curfew than on Monday night.
Commissioner Shea says the department has a good handle on who is behind the looting in the city over the past few days.
"In terms of looting, those people are from New York City, a lot of people from Brooklyn and the Bronx," Shea told reporters Wednesday.
Peaceful protests and marches were held all across the five boroughs and only sporadic looting was reported.
In Union Square, protestors peacefully gathered, chanting "Black Lives Matter".
That did not stop police from placing about a dozen people in zipties for violating the 8 o'clock curfew.
At Cooper Union nearby, police arrested protesters as well for breaking curfew.
Some protesters offered solutions on how to stop the violence longterm.
"I think the police system needs to be changed a little but. We need to have more tests, more obstacles for them before you're able to get certified. I think there need to be a lot more steps in between before you start having that power. I think power is abused and it needs to be more earned. I think there needs to be a better way for it to be earned before anything can get fixed," said one protester.
Barclays Center in Brooklyn also saw its fifth straight night of large protest.
There were some tense moments when protesters tried to cross the Manhattan Bridge from Brooklyn.
Police blocked their entrance into Manhattan but the demonstrators eventually turned back to Brooklyn.
More protests are expected to be underway Wednesday.
Meanwhile, some high-end retailers are still taking no chances to protect their merchandise.
Saks Fifth Avenue surrounded its flagship store with plywood, fencing and razor wire to keep any and all looters from smashing their way in and making off with its luxury goods.
More than a dozen private security guards with specially trained dogs were also hired to protect its merchandise.
While looting reports were not as widespread as the night before, NY1's crews observed smashed windows of a Zara at Broadway and Fulton Street in Manhattan and some items pilfered despite the shop boarding up.
It was not clear what people took from the store.
In addition, at least one trash fire was spotted in Chelsea Tuesday evening.