Glenn

Wed, 09 Jul 2003 13:20:40 -0500

Cops let minor infractions slide all the time, and they certainly cherry pick what laws they're going to enforce and where they're going to enforce them. I mean, haven't you ever jaywalked right in front of a moving squad car? In a small town that'd probably get you a citation. If a person had a few drinks and drowned in the water off a public beach, not only did a person die but his/her family would be sure to slap the city with a lawsuit. They would assume a cop should have been there to prevent the drinking, and thus the drowning. No drownings, no lawsuits, no drinking citations at public beaches. It just so happens that (most likely) gay, wine-drinking couples, such as the ones interviewed in the article, may not hang out at Far Rockaway with great frequency. They hang out in Central Park, where it's pretty hard to drown in a sea of green grass. The working class hangs out at Far Rockaway, so they get more summonses. Some would say cops target the working class. I'd say they're trying to cover their asses.

Gothamist: Class War With Drinking Outside

Glenn