NYC hospital ‘Karen’ paid for Citi Bike at center of viral fight with black man: lawyer
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
The lawyer for a Manhattan hospital worker accused of taking a Citi Bike from a young black man — who claimed that he paid for the two-wheeler — provided receipts that he says show she was the one who purchased the ride at the center of the viral incident.
The Bellevue Hospital employee — who was branded a “Karen” on social media afterward — rented the bike first, lawyer Justin Marino said in a statement to The Post Wednesday.
He also provided two Citi Bike receipts from May 12, which were timestamped just minutes apart.
The first receipt reviewed by The Post shows the bike being taken out before it was re-locked one minute later, which Marino said is the bike seen in the video.
The second receipt shows another bike being taken out a minute later from the same docking station and was the bike Marino said his client used to get home after being “heckled and pressured to find a new bike” by the group.
The hospital employee, who Marino says is a six-months-pregnant physician assistant, was placed on leave by NYC Health + Hospitals this week after her heated encounter with the men emerged online Saturday and has been viewed tens of millions of times.
Marino called the caught-on-tape interaction “incomplete” and lacking facts.
He said after the health care worker wrapped up her 12-hour shift, she got on an available bike, “which no individuals were on or touching,” and paid for it through the Citi Bike app on her phone.
As she backed it up from the docking station, a group of five people approached her and claimed the bike was theirs, he said.
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NYC hospital ‘Karen’ on leave after being accused of trying to take black man’s bike in viral video
“One or more individuals in that group physically pushed her bike (with her on it) back into the docking station, causing it to re-lock,” Marino said in the written statement.
One of the individuals then covered the bike’s QR code, stopping her from paying for it again so she could leave, Marino said.
“In blocking the QR code, this individual’s arm was touching my client’s pregnant stomach, a condition of which she had made them aware,” he added. “Throughout this time and for the remainder of the video, roughly five individuals were telling her to get off the bike and heckling her.”
“The fact anyone would treat another person like this is tragic, especially a visibly pregnant woman,” he said.
The roughly 90-second clip that begins mid-confrontation shows the woman dressed in hospital-branded scrubs screaming for help as she tugs at the bike.
“Help! Help me! Please, help me,” she yells.
The young man kept his grip on the bike’s handlebars and repeatedly told the woman that he already paid to use that particular bike and it wasn’t hers.
“Get off me! Get off me, you’re hurting my fetus,” the woman then shouted as she pushed the man away.
“I’m not touching you! You’re putting your stomach on my hand,” the man replied.
Halfway through the clip, the hospital worker appears to start crying as another man in the same scrubs approached the melee to see what was going on.
The young man again claimed to the woman the bike was on his account and asked her to move before she rented another bike on the advice of her colleague.
Some social media users called the interaction racist while others compared the situation to when Amy Cooper called the police on a black birdwatcher in 2020 and lost her job over it.
The NYPD said it did not receive any 911 calls over this incident.
Marino said his client is a dedicated hospital worker who has treated “literally thousands of New York City residents of all backgrounds/ethnicities.”
“Simply, her entire life has been focused on helping others, irrespective of their background,” Marino said.
YC Health + Hospitals called the video “disturbing” when announcing she was placed on leave Tuesday. The hospital system said she would remain on leave pending a review of the incident.
Marino declined to comment on anything tied to his client’s employment Wednesday.
NYC Health + Hospitals did not immediately return a request for a comment Wednesday.
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Pregnant nurse rents bike, gets it stolen by a group of teens, gets doxed, called a white supremacist and otherwise harassed and threatened by a racist online woke mob and gets suspended from her job. All for renting a bike to go home to her family.
Just another day in Biden's America.
Do you hold Biden responsible for everything that takes place in the nation?
If this occurred (and we all know events like this did occur) when Reagan was PotUS, would you deem this as "just another day in Reagan's America"?
A PotUS realistically cannot be blamed for every wrong act that takes place in our nation.
Do you hold Biden responsible for everything that takes place in the nation?
Is that the standard again? For 4 Years, the last President was held responsible for every crime or faked hate crime on this site, and I don't ever remember you ever objecting when Trump supposedly created the "climate" that made everything his fault.
and we all know events like this did occur) when Reagan was PotUS
I would be very surprised if a mob would ever have believed a pregnant nurse stole a bike from 5 teenagers at anytime and causing the woman to be suspended from her job before Obama was President.
It never was NOT the standard.
You pull that cheap "I don't remember you..." crap too? That is feeble bullshit. Do you remember me piling on against Trump ... claiming everything is his fault, making fun of every mistake, etc.? If so that is purely your imagination. My complaint with Trump is his terrible presence as the face of the USA, his profound dishonesty, lying, and abysmal character. I did blame him for trying to downplay the pandemic and his stupid off-the-cuff suggestions regarding protection and treatment for COVID-19. But those were decisions/actions that he personally did. And you probably do not 'recall' me giving him part of the credit for the quick production of the vaccines. So you do not know what you are talking about when you make things personal. Stick to the issues.
You deflected. My question was: "If this occurred (and we all know events like this did occur) when Reagan was PotUS, would you deem this as "just another day in Reagan's America"?"
Are you going to stand up and answer the question?
You're always seem to come here and make excuses for bad actors. In this case that happens to be a bunch of punks. And yes, the Democrats have created the climate that encourages this kind of behavior...starting with Obama and continuing under Biden.
You like inventing your own 'facts'.
Where is the excuse for the behavior? Quote me.
This behavior did not occur prior to Obama? People have been assholes to each other for all of recorded history (and no doubt much prior to that). So here is the question I asked Sean:
"If this occurred (and we all know events like this did occur) when Reagan was PotUS, would you deem this as "just another day in Reagan's America"?"
Are you going to answer or deflect?
Please knock this shit off. You had a perfectly reasonable - and relevant - take going until you brought Biden into it. Not everything that happens in this world is political, and even fewer can be connected specifically to the president.
Lookie here, a wee culture war post to excite magaland into thinking this is happening everywhere.
Just another day in New York Post's 'world'.
Wow. Another person who found their voice after years of silence ! I'm sure, the next time a local crime is posted here that progressives are publicizing you'll speak right up with he same objection. .
Multiple atrocities here. We have bullies attacking a pregnant nurse, and then we have the internet gleefully rushing to attack her as a woman and brand her a “Karen” - a slur that is not only mostly misapplied, but also long past its expiration date.
Hate to say it but this is probably just the tip of the iceberg. With the new AI coming online and with advancements, it is going to become difficult to distinguish what is real and what is fake in video land.
Arvo...what no shots fired!!..
There is hope yet...