Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Haw Haw The NYPD Killed These Dirt Bikes Real Good On Facebook Live
By
Scott Heins
Published May 17, 2016
Modified May 17, 2016
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Scott Heins
Published May 17, 2016
Modified May 17, 2016
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
This afternoon, the NYPD fulfilled its promise to punish the city's "knuckleheads" by crushing a massive pile of confiscated dirt bikes and ATVs with a bulldozer—and because they were essentially meting out justice at a monster truck rally, they streamed it on Facebook live.
The crushening happened at Erie Basin Auto Pound in Red Hook, and begins at about the 2:25 mark. But don't skip ahead: you must first reckon with how much fun NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton is having.
First, Bratton walks along the line of condemned bikes and ATVs, gazing into their guilty faces, a final requiem for the damned.
Then, at the 58 second mark, the commissioner takes his perch atop a two foot metal podium, literally seizing the moral high ground. He rests his fists atop the podium's protective barricades before waving a checkered race flag.
"Just like the Indy 500," Bratton says, a bit nervously, because he is the civilian leader of a massive armed force, standing on a podium, conducting wanton destruction for our entertainment.
Forget the Buzzfeed surgery-streamers and the do-gooders at the New York Times. No Kawasaki is safe, and the long arm of the law is both swift and viral. Smash that "Like" button!
View post on imgur.com
Tagged
dirt bikes
facebook live
nypd
Scott Heins
Scott Heins is a freelance photo and video journalist based in New York City, and a frequent contributor to Gothamist + WNYC. His work often centers around labor rights, housing, and policing. In 2018-2019 he traveled to four states while covering a wave of public school teachers strikes, with work featured in The New York Times, The Intercept, Getty Images, Splinter, and Bloomberg Photos. Scott is a dues-paying member of the National Writers Union's Freelance Solidarity Project.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Bronx community hosts vigil for boy killed in e-bike fire
Zion Maine died Wednesday after a lithium-ion battery ignited, killing him and injuring four members of his family.
By
Carol Chen
Published Oct 29, 2026 at 9:22 p.m. ET
8 people charged in $7M SNAP benefit fraud scheme
The scam impacted thousands of people, according to the Manhattan district attorney’s office.
By
Giulia Heyward
News
8 people charged in $7M SNAP benefit fraud scheme
The scam impacted thousands of people, according to the Manhattan district attorney’s office.
By
Giulia Heyward
California man was shot by a NJ detective in Moonachie, officials say
By
Kaya Laterman
The NYPD is confiscating e-bikes along a clogged East Village street
By
Willow Higgins
New Yorkers enrolled in SNAP will get more money for fresh produce next year
By
Giulia Heyward
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .