In this Wednesday, April 18, 2018 photo, Rashon Nelson, left, and Donte Robinson, right, listen to a reporter's question during an interview with The Associated Press in Philadelphia. Their arrests at a local Starbucks quickly became a viral video and galvanized people around the country who saw the incident as modern-day racism. In the week since, Nelson and Robinson have met with Starbucks CEO Kevin Johnson and are pushing for lasting changes to ensure that what happened to them doesn't happen to future patrons. (AP Photo/Jacqueline Larma)
The Associated Press
PHILADELPHIA (AP) - The Latest on two men arrested at Philadelphia Starbucks (all times local):
12:20 p.m.
Philadelphia's police commissioner is apologizing to two black men who were arrested at a Starbucks in the city.
Commissioner Richard Ross, who is black, apologized to the two men on Thursday after he previously staunchly defended police for their handling of the incident.
Ross says that he "failed miserably" in the messaging around the arrests. He says that the issue of race is not lost on him and he shouldn't be the person making things worse.
He says the police department did not have a policy for dealing for similar situations, but does now. He says it will be released soon.
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Midnight
Two black men arrested at a Philadelphia Starbucks said they were just waiting for a business meeting - and a week later still wonder how that could escalate into a police encounter that left them fearing for their lives.
Rashon Nelson and Donte Robinson tell The Associated Press in their first interview since video of their April 12 arrests went viral. The arrests, recorded on a white customer's cellphone video, galvanized people around the country who saw the exchange as modern-day racism.
The men have met with the CEO of Starbucks and are pushing for meaningful change so what happened to them does not happen to anyone else.
Police this week released a recording of the call from the Starbucks employee that led to the arrest. In it, a woman is heard saying the men refused to "make a purchase or leave."
Starbucks has promised to train employees about unconscious bias.
FILE- This March 24, 2018, file photo shows a sign in a Starbucks located in downtown Pittsburgh. Starbucks said Tuesday, April 17, that it will close more than 8,000 U.S. stores for several hours next month to conduct racial-bias training to its nearly 175,000 workers. The announcement comes after two black men were arrested in a Philadelphia Starbucks store, sparking protests and calls for a boycott on social media. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File)
The Associated Press
Jennifer Bennetch with her son Yusuf Williams-Bey protest outside the Starbucks on 18th & Spruce Streets in Philadelphia, Monday, April 16, 2018. Two African-American men were arrested a week earlier in a video incident that went viral. (Jose F. Moreno/The Philadelphia Inquirer via AP)
The Associated Press
Starbucks CEO Kevin Johnson, center, walks towards a meeting with Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney and other officials Monday April 16, 2018, at Philadelphia City Hall. Starbucks wants to add training for store managers on "unconscious bias," Johnson said Monday, as activists held more protests at a Philadelphia store where two black men were arrested when employees said they were trespassing. (AP Photo/Jacqueline Larma)
The Associated Press