Screengrab via Freedom News TV
Updated: Per multiple residents and readers, the woman was released and spotted back in the neighborhood. (See the comments.)
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Police arrested a woman yesterday afternoon after a reported "hair-pulling rampage" in Tompkins Square Park.
According to ABC 7, "A woman was seen walking up to people and violently tugging on their hair." Witnesses said she approached between five and seven people in Tompkins. One report said she also attempted to grab a 7-month-old baby.
After she left the Park, the woman was seen knocking over several tables and chairs outside restaurants on St. Park's Place and Avenue A.
Police took her into custody on Ninth Street just west of Avenue A. ABC 7 reports that EMTs took her to Bellevue Hospital for an evaluation.
Freedom News TV posted a 3-minute video of the incidents on YouTube.
According to the Post, the woman is only know to the NYPD as Pop Star.
51 comments:
There is more to this story. I filed this complaint with NYPD 311 given their abysmal response time, pasting it here:
“ At about 4:00pm a woman sexually assaulted another woman (grabbed her boob) at 7th Street Burger in the East Village. The assailant is a regularly known woman with mental issues who walks around the East Village. Bystanders called the police. Yet, the police never came. The assailant was let go by the civilians restraining her. She then went on a 20 min rampage through the East Village: from 7th St and 1st Ave, up to St Marks, turned right on St Marks, into Tompkins Square park (where I decided to call 911 myself), around the park, and finally up to 9th St and Avenue A where 2 police officers from inside Tompkins Square park followed her and she was placed into an ambulance. Along her 30 min route she assaulted people (saw her punching, fighting, etc. people on sidewalk), stole and destroyed property (flipped over restaurant tables, broke glasses in the street) and was a menace in general (knocked news paper vending machines into the street, knocked over public trash cans). My complaint is about the police department’s lack of response. It was only about 20 minutes into her rampage that two police officers from Tompkins Square Park finally walked to find her along with an ambulance. She sexually assaulted a woman at 7th Street Burger and when I went there afterwards, the employees told me the police never even came there to stop her or take a report. Is there any report documented of the assailant’s behavior over this 30 min period? There were literally hundreds of witnesses to her menacing behavior across 5 blocks over 30 min (it was a huge spectacle and everyone around was discussing it and trying to get help) yet the police barely came (despite there being a police station 2 blocks away from 7th Street Burger) and I am not confident anything was taken down as record of this. I would like the police to actually show up when they receive multiple complaints, and to take reports about criminal behavior like sexual assault and destroying property and physical assault / fighting. I feel very bad for the assailant but she is a known quantity around the East Village, we all know her and she took it too far today and I wish there had been swifter actions and reports taken.”
First the wig snatching incident involving that attorney and now this. I’m not sure why respecting personal space and boundaries is such a hard concept for some people to understand…
The sad part I believe to be true is that she will be released back into the public only to repeat this type of disturbing behavior again. I truly hope she accesses the professional help she desperately needs.
Scary. Glad she was caught quickly. Hopefully she’s not let out quickly.
Why did it take so long for police to respond? There are police stationed at migrant respite center on the corner. The park is filled Sunday park goers plus EDPs & homeless from surrounding shelters. And at least 20 minutes for police to respond — and after the perp had left the park
The longer the city ignores the mental health and the poverty the more common things like this will happen. This is not the East Village your Realtor sold you.
Pretty sure I've seen this woman in the park in the previous week acting agitated, proclaiming herself best friends with Kim Kardashian and breaking bottles. Wish I could say I was surprised she's escalated. I hope she gets some actual help now.
"This is not the East Village your Realtor sold you."
This is a terrible angle to take on this sad story.
Crying woman was also around yesterday on Avenue A. She was crossing the street, back and forth, wailing and drooling.
She’s out. Spotted today, with hospital bands on her wrist, ambling down 7th street talking to herself.
I can validate this account as well. Unfortunately she’s out. Spotted today, with hospital bands on her wrist, ambling down 7th street talking to herself.
Saw her in the park a few minutes ago (Monday 06/05). She does not appear to have received meaningful medical help.
I am not playing devil’s advocate, but I wonder if the cops are loath to respond to mental health complaints because we have said there should be trained professionals, not law enforcement responding. But realistically, imagine the number of mental health professionals we would have if we had them (too few), and how far they would likely be from the location of any problem. It is sad, but this woman has a life-stealing illness that could be managed with meds, plus 24x7 support from family and community.
My GF and I were sitting outside of 10 Degrees (the video of her rampage we were sitting in the seats at the 1:08 mark, but got up just before because we saw glass flying and went inside to avoid being hit). The police were SO casual in their pursuit it was ridiculous. The owner of Hanoi House was more active in dealing with this than they were! Very lucky nobody was injured.
Can't say I care what the cops are "loath" to do or not do. I believe passionately that they should have a much lesser role in managing EDP issues on the streets (why can't we hire as many mental health professionals as cops?), but until then it is part of their job and they are being paid ridiculously well to do it. They don't get to opt in or out of their job description. Do you?
When someone goes on a violent rampage, my thoughts are with the victims, not the perpetrator.
This is a step in the right direction.
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/04/nyregion/brooklyn-brownsville-no-police.html
Have community volunteers respond while being shadowed by plain clothes cops. Not sure how relevant it is to this particular thread as the woman was violent. But longer term even in the, sorry, relatively crime free East Village having a more community based approach is the way forward. And note I said less crime in relation to other parts of the city, not that the level here is acceptable.
That she's right back out isn't the cops fault. There is nowhere near the money for enough mental health services and the decision has been made to not warehouse them in the jail system.
This woman, whom we all know and see daily, is not in control of herself. Her schizophrenia has wholly captured her, and she’s left to meander the neighborhood in various states of psychosis, often resulting in wild displays of provocative behavior and bizarre hygiene. To say nothing of yesterday’s break.
How do we get her help? Literally, what resources are available? Does anyone know?
"When someone goes on a violent rampage, my thoughts are with the victims, not the perpetrator."
I hope you never have to deal with a loved one who is seriously mentally ill. This woman is very obviously not in touch with reality.
Once again the the EV whiners and crank socialists can bang on about the state of mental issues in NYC but at the end of day the fact is some people simply can not be successfully treated. " a life stealing illness that could be managed with meds." Even a certified doctor could not make that claim. A mentally person simply cannot be forced to take magic "meds." What meds exactly and what dosage would get this woman sorted?
Could it even be done without putting her into vegetative state? Would everyone be ok if she had serious side effects and was out of view but didn't pester anyone? And the indignation that the Police don't give a shit is laughable. If the All Cops Are Bastards contingent and their rabid supporters would tone it down maybe there would be a different police response. You tell them fuck you. They're telling you fuck you right back. Maybe one day common sense will make a comeback.
Just saw her on 7th and 1st ave by Dunkin yelling at people. I always see her around but it seems like she’s gotten worse over the last year. It’s unfortunate she’s not getting the help she needs. It’s only going to happen again soon.
Why would she be released with video evidence of assault and vandalism? Why did they police take so long to respond?
questions that my taxes will never answer
Anyone know her name? She’s been around EV for couple of years at least. clearly getting worse in the head. sad but she cannot be allowed in public after such an incident. And yet she is
So what is the solution here? In your scenario no mental health services or medication are made available to this woman. We as a society stop saying ACAB (not saying I agree with this acronym, I'm just following your argument) and we call the cops up and because they no longer feel like saying fuck you to the community they are sworn to protect and serve, this woman gets arrested and thrown in jail where she will...what? Continue to be so mentally ill that she is open to abuse by those bad actors in the incarceration system and then she...what? Hurts her fellow prisoners? Simply dies in there? And that to you makes more sense than there being a mental health system that could allow her any semblance of a chance at a life? No, you cannot force anyone to take meds but what makes you so sure it's either a vegetative state and severe side effects or jail? Is there no in-between that we can strive for?
"If the All Cops Are Bastards contingent and their ra rabid supporters would tone it down maybe there would be a different police response. You tell them fuck you. They're telling you fuck you right back"
They are not doing their jobs out of the goodness of their hearts. They are getting paid HANDSOMELY to do it. If their feelings are hurt because they think the community is insufficiently appreciative, then they can quit. As long as they are taking a city check, they don't get to decide what parts of their job they do or don't do. Who set them up over us as our overlords, to suck down fat salaries and pensions and only do their job when they feel like it? By any measure, this lady needed rapid intervention to protect both her and her neighbors, and it was their responsibility to provide it.
The system has failed us. We must look to other modernized societies for what role they facilitate in these type of situations, and how they properly address the problems of the mentally ill. I believe in socialism. Every human being should have access to adequate medical healthcare and mental health services where there are safe places to retreat to for times of crisis. But clearly, this problem continues to arise without resolution or rehabilitation as there are insufficient funds and no vital programs laid out to protect others. I am frustrated. I predicted this woman would return to the public, and low and behold, here she is, out of her mind according to residents reeking havoc upon all of us once more. This sad woman is a statistic who is lost and in desperate need of help. She needs compassion not disdain or judgment.
I suspect this might be the same person who randomly smashed the glass in our building's front door with a large rock on a busy Sunday afternoon (4/16 around 4pm)
What's your answer? This person is already back on the street. What should be done if mentally ill homeless people refuse shelter, medication and treatment?
I would like to know how she could be evaluated as not a threat to others when she was running around assaulting people and threatening a baby (?). It seems to me that she should meet the standard for involuntary hospitalization, at least long enough to stabilize her on antipsychotics (which would take more than the apparently sixteen hours or so between her being picked up and being released again). I wonder if she has any family or if they've given up in despair.
It's sad AND dangerous. We can acknowledge both issues. Whatever you want to call it, there is a problem here.
The question is how do we deal with it as a community? Right now there is no system in place that actually works. And neither is there consensus on a way forward.
In the meantime, individuals and small businesses are the ones who have to take the brunt of it. Most people are just not equipped to deal with a situation like this.
@7:08- Your comment illustrates how absolutely naive and clueless you are. Don't tell me. Go tell that to your elected officials what they must do in your view. Then get back to me with the results.
@6:34 and 7:43- I don't have any answers to what should be done nor would I pretend to know. It's almost akin to asking me how to treat someone with incurable brain cancer.
I don’t know how to get her help.she was near our building the other week and My husband asked her if she needed help. She said yes. She said she didn’t know what kind of help. We went home and called 911 and gave a neighborly description that she is frequently around and just seems to
Be having a hard time, maybe schizophrenic, but has never troubled anyone in all the times we’ve seen her around the neighborhood.
We could see police car come
By and stop but likely waiting for other medics help or perhaps to see if she was causing any harm to others. Not sure what if anything happened. So many people need help.
I was wondering the same. It feels
Like this fits the description of the kind of situation that a dr could require involuntary hospitalization, based I the police report you all gave here.
If she is escalating in violent behavior then worse things might/probably will happen. Sad all around but this sounds like a brewing story with more chapters.
She had been attacking people since at least 1 that afternoon.
I just scrolled on my twitter feed. A video of her terrorizing people in the park has now gone viral with hundreds of responses from around the world. Many are commenting why is nothing being done. This is a dire situation. I commented earlier regarding compassion for those who are in need of help. She is obviously out of her mind and poses a threat to our community. I am uncertain however how one is or can be involuntary committed. The legal perimeters are murky. Another arrest on her behalf is futile. She needs meds, intervention, and therapy to start. But where and when will happen? Who is picking up the tab? Will it take a senseless tragedy in order for something to spearhead her rehabilitation? Very distressing. I hope she can find help somehow.
From the video posted online the worst thing that I saw was the hair pulling on the lawn for a few seconds. She was eventually handcuffed, taken to the hospital, and released. Apparently the medical staff didn't conclude she needed to be held involuntarily. I didn't see her "attacking" anyone else. By attack I mean a violent assault and battery. She's probably more than a bit unhinged but aside from her mental condition, which I'm not qualified to determine, my take is that she can pull this shit because there no consequences and she knows this. Aside from the spitting when she was arrested she was actually quite compliant. A really crazy person would have resisted kicking and screaming. Probably nothing can be done until she gets seriously violent. If you're afraid of her next time you see her coming I suggest you pick up your shit and run.
This kind of behavior among homeless people is becoming much more common. There’s a guy around Union Square who goes to multiple garbage bag piles at night and strews the garbage it all over the sidewalk making it impossible to pass without walking in the street. There’s another one who knocks over all the garbage cans on every corner. There is a lot of broken glass of the street these days from people intentionally breaking bottles for some reason. This is obviously a mental health issue, and for some reason it’s just becoming much more common.
@7:08: Oh, go lick the cops' boots harder. Maybe they'll pat you on the head and call you a good boy. Then they'll let you pay them more taxes for the privilege of deciding whether you deserve protection or not.
The idea that you can determine that a person who has been behaving in an extremely erratic way for weeks (including going around oblivious to the fact that her breasts were completely falling out of her top) all the way up to getting arrested isn't "really crazy" is laughable. People like you always figure out a way to convince yourself that people who need help somehow don't *really* need it so you don't have to do anything or feel bad about not doing anything. It's foul as hell, and you'd better pray you never end up needing help yourself.
Cops have "fat salaries"? OMG that is so not based on reality. The patrols you see in our area are made up of 1-5 years on the job cops hardly receiving a fat salary. That's ludicrous. Also, I'd steer clear of blaming the responding officers who are following patrol guidelines. It's the higher up brass who set the agenda and the higher up you go the more political everything becomes. We the people allow ourselves to be policed and when we're no longer willing to see if through the political climate changes. Take it easy with all of that rhetoric.
You’ve officially lost the argument when you resort to essentially name calling
Also lots of mind reading on your part in this thread
That’s another tell as to what your all about
There was an article about this in today’s New York Post, with pictures of the girl. I’ve seen this girl around for about the last 2 years. It was always evident that she was not in her right mind but I never witnessed her being violent. She always dresses stylishly, but sometimes she walks around naked. It’s sad. Our society doesn’t seem to deal with these situations properly.
One afternoon some months ago she jumped in front of me as I was walking on first ave at 7th, got within a foot of me and held up a dead mouse by its tail and started giggling. this woman is a menace.
The total comp package for cops--with their salaries, the nearly-endless permitted OT, their pensions (which most of us don't get), and their benefits, to say nothing of the general impunity they enjoy in life--is, in fact, quite generous. And they SHOULD be well-paid, IF they are doing their jobs right. It's a challenging job. But as a taxpayer myself, I don't want to be paying people to protect and serve who think they can pick and choose, who to help, who to ignore, and who to gun down. They did not help this woman for far too long (and it seems barely at all when they did), which left both her and us vulnerable. Period.
Unfortunately, there are people whose mental illness require institutionalization. In 1980 Carter signed the Mental Health Systems Act - landmark legislation to create a national mental health care system. The next year when Regan came to office he continued his efforts to illuminate mental health care services he’d began as governor of California - and most of the MSHA was repealed or defunded. While governor of CA he signed the Lanterman–Petris–Short Act - which makes the involuntarily commitment of a person for mental health illness almost impossible. The power of involuntary commitment had been historically abused - no dispute there - but this act is why to this day severely mentally I’ll people can refuse treatment and check themselves out of care.
Agreed, why is everyone overly sympathetic to the perpetrator, I get that she needs help but it seems a bit offensive to all the victims
Gothamist has a story today about Rivington House opening as a behavioral health center. I wonder if this will be of any help in cases like this.
To quote a phrase from Phil Collins’ heart wrenching ANOTHER DAY IN PARADISE
“Oh Lord, is there nothing more anybody can do?”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qt2mbGP6vFI&list=RDQt2mbGP6vFI&start_radio=1
Collins recorded the song in 1989 – i.e. – 34 years ago. Not sure when the video was filmed.
Wish it could be mandatory viewing for every politician seeking, or presently holding, public office.
Genuine question for those who are long time EVers. Has it ever been this bad post 90s? The grafiti, the trash, the smell, the mental health and homelessness, the open air drug deal and use?
A little late to this but are you two referring to the homeless woman who constantly roams 1st Ave, Ave A, between 11th and 13th street? Who screams and cries all the time? I live on 13th and 1st and have never seen someone so gone from reality. Feel very bad it’s sad.
@6:25 - I know of the woman you are referencing and she is not this same person. The woman you speak of is in a really sad state and it's painful to see her that way, but I don't know what can be done. It doesn't appear that she directly threatens or hurts anyone, but is definitely in need of help.
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