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Unmasked Cops, Who Shoved Customer Out of Subway For Asking Why They Were Unmasked, Face Discipline
By
Stephen Nessen
Published Oct 20, 2021
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By
Stephen Nessen
Published Oct 20, 2021
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The unmasked NYPD police officers who were caught on camera Tuesday morning forcibly removing a subway passenger from a subway platform, after he repeatedly asked why they weren’t complying with federal rules that require everyone to wear a mask on mass transit, will face disciplinary action.
“Absolutely inexcusable,” Police Commissioner Dermot Shea said at a police briefing Wednesday afternoon describing the incident, which took place at the 8th Street subway station in Manhattan.
The video shows a male officer shoving the commuter, Andrew Gilbert, through an emergency exit that a female officer opens. Gilbert can be heard asking for their badge numbers, and the male officer calls him "disruptive."
Victoria Hall, who filmed the encounter, told Gothamist that she had just been on the subway for over an hour, "hearing every five minutes I need to wear a mask... so when I got off the train, I saw the police officers without theirs and Andrew asking them why not. And police were being very obnoxious."
Hall started to film Gilbert and the police when the officers were getting "aggressive," she said. The male officer also claimed he couldn't hear Gilbert's questions through Gilbert's mask.
"It's the law whether we like or agree.. and police officers shouldn't be above the law. They should uphold it and set example for the rest of us," Hall said. "All [the male officer] had to do was say 'you know, you're right, thanks for reminding me, I'll be more careful in future.' [But] he was so obnoxious pretending he couldn't hear Andrew 'through your mask.'"
Shea didn’t explain what type of discipline the officers would receive.
“Nobody’s getting fired over this incident, nobody’s getting suspended over this incident, but at the same time, I’m not in any way shape or form attempting to downplay that,” he said.
Shea said the officers involved were part of the 1,000 NYPD officers that have recently been sent into the subway system to crack down on increases in some crimes.
The most recent transit crime statistics from the NYPD show a drop in overall felony crimes by 14% this year, compared to last year with 1,183 felony crimes in 2021, compared to 1,372 in 2020. The only category that has seen an increase was felony assaults, which are up 35%, with 348 in 2021 compared to 258 in 2020.
At Wednesday’s MTA board meeting, agency Chairman Janno Lieber spoke directly to the many police officers in the subway who don’t wear masks.
“C’mon, set an example. You are the people who are responsible for getting everyone to comply with masking,” Lieber said. “C’mon it’s enough already. We count on our law enforcement officers to set an example, they got to do it, and frankly the city’s recovery is counting on people being able to be safe on mass transit.”
Lieber noted mass transit is not primarily where COVID is spread, but wearing a mask reassures and protects riders.
The law allows officers to write $50 tickets for not wearing a mask in the subway, but the MTA has said it prefers to hand out masks, rather than tickets. Very few tickets have been issued. The MTA said Wednesday that, overall across its system, mask compliance is at about 90%.
Gilbert said he was disappointed by the police commissioner’s response, but he doesn’t expect much to change.
“When these officers are quietly given a slap on the wrist, it will send a message to all of the other corrupt cops out there that there are no consequences for breaking the law and abusing the public, just like every other case in the past has empowered them,” Gilbert wrote to Gothamist. “At some point this is going to have to change if we want to live in a society of law and order.”
Tagged
we the commuters
pandemic
nypd
subway
masks
Stephen Nessen
Stephen Nessen covers transportation. Since 2008 he has reported on everything from Occupy Wall Street, the rebuilding of the World Trade Center site, Hurricane Sandy, to Trump’s campaign for president. His transportation reporting has taken him everywhere from the MTA’s secret Rail Control Center to the gleaming subways of Seoul. Got a tip? Email [email protected].
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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