PHILADELPHIA — 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.

RIGHT NOW: @PhillyPolice Commissioner Ross on #Starbucks Arrests: I apologize. should have said officers acted in scope of law, not that they were in the “right.” We’ve developed a new policy. @6abc pic.twitter.com/O5TzmRgp5E — Maggie Kent (@MaggieKent6abc) April 19, 2018

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.

READ MORE: Men arrested at Starbucks say they feared for their lives