The Rev. Al Sharpton – Abner Louima’s longtime adviser – was said to be surprised by the police-torture victim’s decision to back Alan Hevesi, sources told The Post.
The garrulous preacher – who, until recently, has had chilly relations with Hevesi for years – issued an unusual “no comment” from his jail cell at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, where he’s serving 90 days for protesting the Vieques bombings.
But one source close to Sharpton said the Hevesi endorsement “was a surprise to him.”
“He had no idea that [Louima] was doing that,” another source said.
Hevesi earned Sharpton’s hostility in 1997, when the comptroller announced that he would never support Sharpton for mayor because the reverend allegedly engaged in divisive tactics.
But Hevesi made amends this year by visiting Sharpton’s Harlem headquarters and subjecting himself to tough questions from a hostile crowd.
Despite the public détente, Sharpton has made it clear that he’s lining up with either Fernando Ferrer or Mark Green.
One of Sharpton’s allies pointed out that while Hevesi and Louima were standing together outside City Hall, the reverend had a jailhouse visit from Ferrer.
When Louima was asked yesterday whether he got Sharpton’s jailhouse blessing before endorsing Hevesi, the Haitian immigrant replied, “I don’t think my decisions [are] supposed to be based on the blessing of somebody else, because I’m able to make my own decisions.”
Political observers were surprised by Louima’s statement, since he and Sharpton were in constant contact after the brutal attack on Louima in a police station house stunned the city in 1997.
In June 2000, Sharpton was at Louima’s side after former cop Charles Schwarz – who was convicted in the attack with Justin Volpe – was sentenced to 15 years behind bars.