Eight police chiefs from major police departments around the country were in Washington yesterday to meet with Attorney General Eric Holder about their concerns with the recently-passed anti-immigrant Arizona law, SB1070.

The chiefs, representing the police departments of Houston, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, Montgomery County (Md.), Philadelphia, Salt Lake City and San Jose, delivered the clear message that laws like SB1070 break down trust between communities and law enforcement and cripple police work.

Los Angeles Police Department Chief Charlie Beck summed it up: “The primary job of a local police department is not the enforcement of immigration status… The primary job of law enforcement is to protect the public and keep us free from crime… If people don’t come forward to help the police solve crime, no matter what their status, then we are doomed to failure. It threatens to destroy a lot of the work that has been done.”

But where was the chief of the NYPD, the nation’s largest police department?

Maybe he had a scheduling conflict. But surely representing a city where nearly 40 percent of the residents are foreign-born and approximately 170 languages are spoken, he must have put out a statement of support of some kind, right?

If you see it, let us know.