Gov. David Paterson announced Friday the creation of a special task force that will work with the NYPD to investigate the correlation between friendly fire incidents and race.

Paterson's panel will look into whether racial bias plays a role in incidents involving police officers accidentally shooting their colleagues, like the one that resulted in the killing of Detective Omar Edwards in East Harlem last week.

The governor says he is leaving the investigation into Edwards' death in the hands of the Manhattan district attorney.

"There should be a feeling all around the state and in every community that these situations are investigated properly," Paterson says. "That they are not marred even by public oration, which would cause residents and citizens to reach a conclusion before the facts are properly investigated."

A spokesperson for the NYPD says the department will do whatever is necessary to support the governor's initiative.