New York disbands M.A.R.C.H. task force behind venue raids, introduces C.U.R.E. initiative
The unit was originally founded in the '90s to crack down on New York nightlife
The New York task force Multi-Agency Response to Community Hotspots, otherwise known as M.A.R.C.H., has been officially disbanded.
It's believed that M.A.R.C.H., which was founded in the '90s, had been behind various random police searches at music venues in Brooklyn early in 2023, as well as a number of police raids at various nightlife venues stretching back since its founding.
Announcing the end of M.A.R.C.H. at a press conference at Brooklyn venue Paragon, New York Mayor Eric Adams called the raids "abusive" and "intrusive", and said the task force had been "the wrong way to go about" keeping on top of community order in New York.
In place of M.A.R.C.H., New York has launched the C.U.R.E. (Coordinating a United Resolution with Establishments) initiative, which will be overseen by the Office of Nightlife and the recently appointed executive director of nightlife Jeffrey Garcia. The New York Police Department said C.U.R.E. will differ to M.A.R.C.H. in that it will be a "solution-oriented" programme under which "enforcement will be a last resort".
M.A.R.C.H. was originally established by former mayor Rudy Giuliani. The task force had been required to play by certain rules when carrying out inspection, including a 30-day pre-warning, but many venues, especially those in Brooklyn, have said these rules were not adhered to.
