Here’s another gem that’s been making the rounds this week. It is a video from 125th Street on the 2 and 3, and it shows what happens when plainclothes cops tried to stop some fare-jumpers. Animal New York posted it this week with a note from the videographer:
Happened around 9:40pm on Friday, October 7th in Harlem below the 125th street and Lenox Street 2/3 station. These girls allegedly jumped the subway turnstile to avoid a fare. When the cops entered the train and tried to talk them out. It didn’t work. They began to force them out and this is what happend next. Not sure if you can fully see but there was a gigantic mob of people who had the cops/girls surrounded. Some seemed to be protesting the cops and others where if favor of the police action. From my vantage point it seemed like the girls were completely in the wrong, but I can’t be sure. It seemed like forever for back up to arrive but as you can see it wasn’t really that long. This happened FAST. Not sure what happened after.
The amount of disrespect shown to the system by those who ride might be greater than the amount shown by Albany.
17 comments
Well if you follow the broken windows theory … of a sort … I’d say that Albany’s disrespect which has allowed the system to fall into a state of awful upkeep and repair (in addition to whatever they have not done to assure job creation as well as improved education funding in NY state) is really the cause of whatever disrespect you might see from passengers.
oh, i see, if only Albany spent more money on schools (never mind that NYS spends more per capita than almost any other state, and there is no clear correlation between expenditure and outcome), these girls would have a totally different attitude.
Do you really believe this sh-t or do you just make it up as you go along?
Given how little funding actually reaches students for activities directly related to learning, probably no more than any other state, a reasonable person might conclude that expenditure is the problem. So there’s no reason to be a snot about it.
A big problem in NYS and probably NJ is a top-heavy administrative regime. Similarly affluent Kalifornia is able to keep school expenditures down around the national norm without achieving much better or worse results.
California has one of the worst education outcomes in the country by any possible measure.
but the property taxes for corporations is frozen in 70s amber, that makes it all worthwhile doesn’t it?
I’m not sure how seriously I’d taken broken windows, at least as a policing tool – I can see it only being effective for a short time, at most.
Still, the transit system isn’t in an especially bad state of repair when compared to any other year over at least the past 15. Turnstile jumping is mainly a crime of opportunity, and (perceived) opportunity has been increased somewhat by the lack of agents in the booth. The supposedly crime-inducing acts of vandalism and graffiti have held fairly constant – you don’t see those trains entirely covered anymore, and neither graffiti or vandalism seem much worse in 2011 than in 2002.
Thus far, all the legislature did was cut back our service.
Ugh. Hopefully they get hit with hefty resisting arrest charges too.
These folks (or their parents, if they’re kids) may well have plenty of income to cover whatever fines they incur, but say they’re unemployed and basically living off the state or employed but making so little that society will not ask them to pay the fine.
What recourse is there then to punish them for trying to skip the fare and for costing society about 20 hours of police time? It seems unlikely that we’d jail anyone for fare jumping. Community service? Do we compel people to work for long periods to atone for minor crimes? If not, what?
They got charged with assaulting a police officer and resisting arrest, just as they should have.
Just so much easier to swipe your Metrocard.
Stupid girls.
Kudos to the NYPD, especially after the one that hit the officer with her bag.
Looking at the video, it looks like the girl in the blue could’ve gotten away by sneaking onto the train when the cops weren’t looking.
so they dont pay the $2.25 they resist the ticket then they resist arrest and smack the police officer with the bag that can be considered assault so we went from $2.25 fare-> $100 fine-> 15 years in prison for assaulting a police officer
I struggle every time one of these videos is posted. These vignettes capturing moments of physical violence/anarchy involving young women of color are alarming. Ignoring the fare is one thing. It’s the disregard for police authority I am most concerned about. I will not want to remain in a city where teenage girls feel free enough to assault police. What’s next?
The consequences of anti-social behavior are clearly not known or non existent. There is a body of law that might be useful – banishment. http://tinyurl.com/3bbyzvc Handle them like sex offenders or tresspassers. At this level of offense, place a court ordered electronic monitor on them and banish them from the MTA services under consequence of jail time.
I pity the teachers and administrators that have to try (everyday) to provide these women with an education.
Those cops don’t need uniforms to look like cops.
and I will feel safe in assuming that those girls had a lot to loose by being brought into the system. They might of had outstanding warrants. They will probably be in the system for at least a few days.
God… i love the iphone era.
Damn video is private.