Discussion: Former Tennis Star Mistakenly Identified, Handcuffed By White Cops

system1 · September 9, 2015, 8:33pm

Discussion for article #240300

lestatdelc · September 9, 2015, 8:54pm

But white privilege is a myth.

(rolls eyes)

jarnj3 · September 9, 2015, 8:58pm

He is due a very public apology.

enon · September 9, 2015, 9:04pm

hell, he’s lucky they didn’t shoot him.

jloomis3 · September 9, 2015, 9:04pm

Standing around, black. A very serious offense.

chiefkurtz · September 9, 2015, 9:05pm

NYPD-Fire, Fire, Aim.

austinite · September 9, 2015, 9:11pm

“You’d think they could say, ‘Hey, we want to talk to you. We are looking into something.’ I was just standing there. I wasn’t running,” Blake told the Daily News.

… he does realize he’s black, right?

Two comments:

It’s SOOO sad that this no longer surprises me. At all. Par for course. #BreathingWhileBlack
Why do I think one of these days we’ll read how Michael Jordan was shot by some cops because a little old white lady told them he looked scary? Or Oprah will be face slammed into the sidewalk by cops due to trying to go into a posh hotel while wearing gym clothes?

pippenpippen · September 9, 2015, 9:12pm

They handcuff for identity theft? Just a suspect? That’s terrible, but then wait a minute. How lame is this? Identity theft is a crime that street cops investigate? Who steals identities out on the street?
The cops were just making that up. That’s a cyber-crime. I hope he sues their pants off. The city must be getting used to paying for these settlements.

mattinpa · September 9, 2015, 9:13pm

Has he done anything less than angelic in the past? We can’t ask our heroes in blue to take a chance when they’re dealing with non-angels.

breccia · September 9, 2015, 9:14pm

He probably made eye contact. Or failed to make eye contact.

dnl · September 9, 2015, 9:16pm

Was this before or after he whupped JohnMcEnroe’s butt?

carlosfiance · September 9, 2015, 9:16pm

“Ex-Tennis Star James Blake Mistakenly Tackled, Detained By White Cops”

“Black former tennis star James Blake was mistakenly slammed to the ground and handcuffed Wednesday outside his hotel in New York by five, white police officers who thought he was a suspect in a identity theft ring, the New York Daily News reported.”

That wasn’t a mistake: Blake clearly has an elevated melanin quotient.

pluckyinky · September 9, 2015, 9:17pm

A public apology…and these cops need to be fired. Enough of this! If you don’t have the basic intelligence or the civility to simply ask someone to step aside so that you can speak to them, you don’t need to be a police officer. If you can’t figure out how to approach a black person without turning into a fucking Neanderthal, then you don’t need to be an officer of the law. I sincerely hope he not only presses charges, but gets a nice settlement. That’s the only thing Police Commissioners and city leaders seem to understand.

If the cops weren’t such clowns, this is how the exchange could’ve easily gone:

Cop: Excuse me, sir. Can we step over to the side and talk for a moment?
Blake: What’s the problem, officer?
Cop: We’ve received a report in which you’ve been identified as being involved in a theft ring. Can I see some ID?
Blake: No problem. :::hands off ID:::A theft ring? You’ve got the wrong guy.
Cop: I see you’re from X,Y,Z. What brings you to town?
Blake: I used to play tennis and I’m headed to an appearance at the US Open. Doing a thing for Time Warner.
Cop: Oh, you played tennis? Professionally?
Blake: Sure did. I was once number 4 in the world.
Cop: Here’s your ID, sir. Sorry to bother you. Good luck at your event today.
Blake: No worries. Thanks officer.

Why is that so hard?

nineo · September 9, 2015, 9:17pm

Man oh man… I can’t imagine. I just can’t. Apologies my American friends, but its good to be Canadian. At least they didn’t shoot him.

carlosfiance · September 9, 2015, 9:18pm

As my local cop said the other day “God gave us instincts for a reason”. Blake had to have been guilty of something, or the cops never would have cuffed him. See how that works?

brooklyndweller · September 9, 2015, 9:18pm

Actually, I would think he’s due for quite a bit more than that.

This is my police department. The one that caused a “slowdown” a few months ago and - no one really noticed. Except for all the Black and brown people who weren’t getting frisked, shot, jailed, etc. on a routine basis. Oh, - and fewer jaywalking tickets.

As for settlements, I’ve heard that the NYPD could care less about the money. They just run wild and that’s that. No money for body cams; plenty of insurance money to pay out to the innocent. Just f*cking brilliant.

khaaannn · September 9, 2015, 9:22pm

Another victim of “Being Black while Breathing” the most nefarious crime in New York City.

terje · September 9, 2015, 9:22pm

“Mistakenly”?

Sadly, there was no mistake involved in the police actions. They saw a black man, saw a pretext to treat him as a criminal, so they tackled and handcuffed him.

The fact that they did it to the wrong guy wasn’t a “mistake” - since he is black, it is just standard operating procedure for the NYPD.

We need to be absolutely clear, police harassment of, and violence against, black men isn’t a mere innocent “mistake” - it is an important feature built into the system of racial oppression.

losamigos · September 9, 2015, 9:23pm

Standing while black?

occamsrazor2 · September 9, 2015, 9:27pm

“A policeman’s lot is not a happy one.” If social pressure prohibits “stop and frisk”, how do we expect them to do their jobs without “slam and cuff” at least?