NEW YORK
The NYPD said it will review an incident in which four plainclothes officers and a lieutenant handcuffed a postal worker who was out driving his mail truck.
The March 17 confrontation involving postal worker Glenn Grays was captured on cellphone videos that have been widely shared. The videos show officers telling Grays to stop resisting even though he does not appear to be resisting.
Grays said at a news conference last week he was delivering mail in Brooklyn when an unmarked police car nearly hit his mail truck. He said he shouted at the driver, and the officers backed the police car up and demanded identification.
Grays told The New York Times the driver said to him, “I have the right of way because I’m law enforcement.”
Grays said he was handcuffed and placed in the back of the unmarked police car. He was then taken to the local precinct and issued a summons for disorderly conduct, which will require him to appear in court.
Appearing with Grays at the news conference on Tuesday, Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams expressed outrage over the apparent violation of a federal employee’s civil rights.
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“They issued him a summons in hopes of sweeping this under the rug,” said Adams, a Democrat and a former police officer.
Adams added, “It is not a crime for someone to voice outrage after almost being struck by a vehicle.”