Arrested Pug Owner Fired Over Anti-Semitic Allegation

Chrissie Brodigan

A Greenpoint woman's altercation with a police officer over carrying her sick dog through the subway has put her out of a job. To recap: Chrissie Brodigan, a VP for Online Media at Plum TV, says that after she argued with Officer Joel Witriol while trying to carry her pug out of the subway, he arrested her, grabbed her breasts, and punched her in the back while saying, "If you're going to act like a woman I'm going to treat you like a woman." Other witnesses corroborated Brodigan's account, but one witness and an unidentified source told the Post that Brodigan yelled at Witriol, the city's first Hasidic officer, "You f---ing Jew, you're not even human. Jewish people think they own everything."

Brodigan initially said that although she yelled at Witriol, she "did not recall" saying anything anti-Semitic. (The following day she e-mailed us to firmly deny saying anything anti-Semitic or about Witriol's Jewish identity. Other witnesses backed her up.) But it seems that her initial Reaganesque denial is what cost her her job; she tells us today:

I was terminated for "equivocating" in the press. My boss [Chris Glowacki] is threatening to not offer an agreeable severance package, including health insurance, which is crucial because i have cystic fibrosis and he is aware. He's angry that this is out in the press. I think he made a judgment based on perceived bigotry.

UPDATE: A publicist for Plum TV writes: "Chrissie Brodigan is no longer employed by Plum. Her employment was terminated for valid reasons, unrelated to the determination of whether or not she made the objectionable statements as alleged in the press. We will have no further comment." Post reporter Reuven Blau has not responded to our inquires about the article; according to his Post colleague Reuven Fenton, Blau is the one who "found" the mysterious witness Viane Delgado in the narrow window of time between when we broke the full story and when the Post print edition went to bed.

No other media outlet has quoted Viane Delgado, and we're still trying to obtain a copy of the police report to see if Delgado was quoted there. (Though an NYPD spokesman's comment that the anti-Semitic charge "sounds like something you're reading in other papers" leads us to suspect there is nothing about that in the police report.) Of course, Blau is under no obligation to elaborate on his witness or "source" or even return our phone calls, but a source tells us the Post is full of shit. (Our source also tells us that dogs bite men.) Below, Chrissie's long open letter to the media about her termination.

An Open Letter: How I Got Slandered By the New York Post & NYPD

"On Monday, June 30, I was wrongfully arrested and physically abused by the NYPD. The arresting officer who manhandled happens to have been the first Hasidic cop on a force of more than 30,000.

In the days that followed the incident, which became well-publicized, because bystanders photographed the arrest and called the "police" on account of the improper behavior of the arresting officer, and because I had the courage to defend my rights and resisted abuse with the support of these witnesses, the situation has become an unimaginable nightmare for me.

I have been falsely accused of being a bigot by the New York Post in an act of the most irresponsible journalism I have ever experienced, and now I have been fired from a job I loved and was great at on account of these vicious accusations and my alleged failure to respond "vigorously enough" to them.

Here is what happened:

Two days after my arrest the New York Post came out with a vicious article in which anti-Semitic remarks were attributed to me by an alleged witness.

Either the Post fabricated the existence of this witness, who despite an exerted effort by both journalists at Gothamist and myself has never been located, or they fabricated her remarks.

There were witnesses at the scene and these witnesses did not hear me make any anti-Semitic remarks and specifically did not recall the existence of the Post's alleged witness. I do not believe that this witness was at the scene nor did any witness hear me make antisemitic remarks.

The truth is that smearing the victim is a classic police technique to cover up abuse and protect the arresting officer.

I am not a bigot, and accusations of bigotry are so absurd that I did not think it even necessary to respond to them.

My "suspension" and now my firing requires that I make things clear to the public.

During the course of my arrest, I did not:

Utter the words "Jewish" or "Jew."
I did not say, "You Jews think you own the world."
I did not use the phrase "You fucking Jews . . . "
I did not say anything that any person, reasonable or not, could have interpreted to mean any reference whatsoever to the obvious religion of the cop who was manhandling me.

These anti-Semitic comments printed by the New York Post never crossed my lips on the day I was wrongfully arrested and physically abused. And, to be even more succinct, those words and statements have NEVER crossed my lips on any other day in my life. EVER.

I believe that ultimately the evidence will come out that the police were involved in the Post's smear job of me, which was an effort to cover up police misconduct.

Under these circumstances it is important that you know who I am:

My academic background at George Mason University involved an undergraduate degree in English with a minor in African American studies that culminated in an honors thesis about the civil rights movement. My graduate studies and masters degrees, I focused my coursework on the history of immigrants, gay, lesbian, black, hispanic, disabled and other oppressed people. My masters thesis and subsequent doctoral dissertation focused on gender discrimination and women's rights in the workplace. Indeed, I note that my principal doctoral advisors were all Jewish.

I have devoted my adult life to studying and supporting the civil rights of minorities.

To smear me as an anti-Semite is both cowardly and a disgrace and victimizes me once again. I expected more from a community to whom I have devoted my best efforts."

Contact the author of this article or email tips@gothamist.com with further questions, comments or tips.

By John Del Signore in News on July 9, 2009 2:22 PM

Comments [rss]

DaveReal

How can a Hasidic man be a police officer? Cops are cruel. They punish people and ruin lives. Judaism preaches forgiveness and compassion. I do not know what truly happened, but I do not believe that anybody who is truly religious could be a cop.

nyorker555

Taffey, "look just stop," to use your own words -- dont you see the irony that your posting sounds as flakey as you suggest Brodigan is? Sorry but your tone is kinda crazed.

Taffey Dollar

Dear nyorkerer55555555,

Yeah, you guessed it I know Christie Brodigan from the psych ward. Everybody hated her there too.

Luv,

Taf

ak

oh see, there's your problem, Taf. You met ChrisTie Brodigan in your trip back to mental health, we've all been talking about Chrissie. No harm, no foul. Just be sure to let somebody know you need the Lortabs back.

annes

I don't understand the vitriol from some commenters.

Granted, it does sound like she overreacted, but that's kind of understandable given the circumstances. As for all of her former colleagues who are using this forum to slander her, I think it's a bit ridiculous for you to talk about how many jobs she's had in the past three years. I know plenty of editors in the same boat b/c so many mags have gone under, down sized or reorg'ed due to the seismic shifts in the industry. If she is so horrible, why do people keep hiring her? God knows there isn't a shortage of qualified applicants right now. Also, I've seen editors who drink heavily at their desk and can barely stumble out of the office at night, and they are still employed. Her behaviour doesn't sound any worse (or better) than this -- I mean isn't erratic behaviour a prereq for being an editor? This doesn't mean she deserves to be harassed by a cop.

Taffey Dollar

Dear annes,

Look....just stop. If you don't get it, please see

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ip5YjB0KT2U&feature=PlayList&p=EE597579983ACA6C&index=0

How nasaly and irritating is she? Just look at that psych-ward hair-do. LOOK at those crazazy eyes.

READ her blog posts...

No one is buying her bullshit...OK

Plus, this horrible person is so out of it she brings a poor dog on the subway in summertime where is a good 10+ degrees warmer than above ground...WTF is that????? She overheats and scares the poor dog by bringing it down in the subway...but god forbid the dog sit in a little vomit until its home or in a safe place to take it out of its carrier. Recall dogs are animals that lick their own asses and will probably eat their own turds...a little vomit probably isn't that big a deal to them.

Oh my! "This doesn't mean she deserves to be harassed by a cop." you say?

Fuck that. She was harrassing every person down there including the cop! No wonder she got a summons. Who wants to see a crazazy-eyed psycho carrying a vomit dog when you're tryin to get on the fucking train....what was she.. flicking dog vomit everywhere?....NASTY...don't we have to go through enough shit already......I gotta see rats and dirty baby diapers, stinky French people, junkies....and also a stank homeless dude riding around with several OPEN Miller High Life bottles filled with his own piss.....

Good god! most of us non-mentally challenged, non-nasaly New Yorkers know to just take the summons and go on with our lives. (See Chrissie, the world didn't end just because you were issued a few citations....right?)

While I doubt her "evolving" account of the situation, I would and will give her a titty twister if I ever fucking see her. Chrissie just take your meds and check back in to the psych ward...

Dwayne Hoover

>5) She has a medical condition (which she has freely admitted to) which is known to cause spontaneous bruising.

She admitted to have Cystic Fibrosis. Since when does CF cause "spontaneous bruising"????? A severe vitamin-K deficiency can cause that, but most CF patients do not fall into that category.

Methinks you are a troll!

notyourfriend

Um...

http://www.ajcn.org/cgi/content/abstract/70/3/378

"Conclusions: Vitamin K deficiency is common in unsupplemented patients with CF and pancreatic insufficiency and routine supplementation should be considered in all of these patients."

Not knowing the details of Chrissie's therapy, we can't say for sure if she is or isn't getting Vitamin K supplements and in what dose. However, given she does have CF, the fact that she is bruised up does not necessarily indicate that she was roughed up by the NYPD. If she does indeed take it all the way in the courts, her CF therapy will be critical to determining whether she was truly abused.

I've worked with her before. The woman digs her own graves. This whole thing with the Hasidim clouds the real issue -- she over-reacted, made some bad judgments and backtracked on her statements to cover her tracks, all the while burning all her bridges behind her.

In the past, all she lost were friends, a little pride and a good reference. This time, it was career suicide. Gothamist is giving her good press and feeding her attention whore needs, all the while ensuring she never gets a job in NYC again.

NorthShore

Yo Gothamist, I guess this is good practice for when you guys have to do more of your own reporting, but that police report isn't going to prove or disprove the anti-Semetic stuff, because 1.) cops rarely put personal insults into the narrative and 2.) especially in something like this, would never canvas a subway station full of oglers to get each account with info (when is the last time you saw a cop take a witness statement on anything?).

So someone could have been in earshot and heard her say it, but there would be no record of it anywhere.

dgeee

Why is the NYPD hiring from the Hasidim? It's one of the most racist and sexually deviant communities in NY that considers itself due an untold amount of special privilege. Hasidim treat Black Americans or "schvartzes" and all non-Jews or "goyim" like the Palestinians are treated in Israel. The first thing I'm going to do if I'm confronted by this officer is turn on my cell phone video recorder as evidence for any future court case.

valeriob

Hey Gothamist! This article is approaching Top Digg.

Some jackass named michaelpinto used this to describe the article in summation:

"A Greenpoint woman's altercation with a police officer over carrying her sick dog through the subway has put her out of a job. While carrying her sick dog out of the subway Chrissie Brodigan was arrested by Officer Joel Witriol who grabbed her breasts and punched her in the back."

penetrode

She admitted on her now deleted twitter that she lost control and resisted arrest.

Numerous people that know her or have dealt with her say she is crazy.

NY state has employment at will. You can get fired for no reason including idiotically bringing attention to yourself, acting like a maniac in public AWAY FROM WORK bringing negative unwanted attention to your employer, and announcing it on the web while at the same time self-implicating oneself.

This lady is crazy. look at her. the cover speaks for the contents.

applebb

If this cop said inappropriate things, fine: he should be disciplined. I don't condone cops abusing authority or being discriminatory or sexist.

That being said: Chrissie has SERIOUS mental issues that shouldn't be taken lightly when considering this situation.

She gets fired from every job she holds for MANIC behavior. This Plum tv thing is just the most recent. Do some research. She is chaos personified.

Ask around DC. There are office stories that will actually make your skin crawl, before you begin to feel really sorry for her and realize how much help she needs.

Like the last commenter mentioned: She does not have a Ph.d. but did study the history of new media and began to pursue a Ph.d in the history of airline stewardesses - not oppressed minorities, not women's studies, not immigrants, not other oppressed peoples: AIRLINE STEWARDESSES. The fact that she claims her "advisors were all Jewish" is the equivalent of saying "but I have black friends!" INSULTING. Here you go: http://chnm.gmu.edu/cabinandcrew/about.html

Chrissie, stop lying and please, go away and get help. From the outset and from the perspective of people who don't know you, this story makes you seem the victim. You forget how many bridges you have burned. We're onto you, and eventually everyone else will figure this out, too.

Manitoba

I love people who come here, register for an account and make a single post about this situation and then leave. Is this the same person, posting as "Julia" and other accounts?

I also do not think her behavior is "manic". If you've ever actually known or been related to someone with mania, you'd know this. It does seem that there may be some slight narcissism or other personality disorder, but frankly, in this day and age where everyone has a story to tell and creates a blog to tell you about their boring life, it feels like 90% of people under the age of 30 have personality disorders.

Some would say the fact that she has had many jobs shows she's "crazy" while others would say it means she's "trying on different hats" and exploring what she wants to do with her life. Frankly, few people with CF live past 40, so maybe she's just trying to move through her employment life more quickly...

Anyway, this whole situation is ridiculous (but oddly compelling), but I find all of the people here posting how she's either the devil or an angel completely absurd. Why anyone would believe anonymous posts about her personality is beyond me.

It seems that she and the cop both over-reacted - she should have been arrested for resisting arrest, but she went on to make the mistake of blogging and facebooking and twittering about the whole mess when she should have let it go; the cop had the legal advice of the PBA and NYPD to obviously tell him to not comment at all. It seems her boss may have over-reacted, but given the negative attention Plum has thus far received as a result, my opinion is that she brought that on herself.

I hope she is able to get severance and COBRA and learns from this and is able to move on as should we all.

applebb

I'm not Julia, I don't know Julia, and I don't really have to explain to you why I don't comment on every single freakin' story Gothamist writes. This story got my attention because I have personal experience in dealing w/ Ms. Brodigan. I don't care about Tim Hortons, I don't like baseball, etc. Who made you Gothamist comment police?

"Trying on different career" hats is one thing, getting fired for consistently inappropriate behavior is quite another.

I can say "manic" because I have seen "manic." End of story.

Manitoba

While this woman may have issues like you say, you're clearly a douche. End of comment.

wobbleSmith

so, y'all wanna start a chrissie brodigan/office joel witriol fan fiction page?

silver

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/07/22/AR2006072201046.html

Chrisse Brodigan is Jewish????!!!????

If so, it might explain her victim mentality and love of everything persecuted (african american studies/immigrants/loves her jewish professors). She might have just been outraged that a Haredi wouldn't give her the ethnic hookup.

silver

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/07/22/AR2006072201046.html

Chrisse Brodigan is Jewish????!!!????

If so, it might explain her victim mentality and love of everything persecuted (african american studies/immigrants/loves her jewish professors). She might have just been outraged that a Haredi wouldn't give her the ethnic hookup.

silver

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/07/22/AR2006072201046.html

Chrissie Brodigan is Jewish????!!!!?????

If so, it explains her victim mentality, and her love of everything persecuted (african american studies/immigrants/civil rights, and her love for her Jewish professors). Maybe she had a fit when the fellow Jewish cop wouldn't give her the ethnic hookup, then she decided start ranting on him for being a barbaric uncivilized Haredi instead of being a modern contemporary Hiloni.

McFister

"3) After being fired from one of the jobs she threw a shrieking, punching, screaming fit that scared the security guard and front desk person so badly that she was committed to Bellevue Psychiatric for observation."

I want to hear more about this, sounds awesome.

Julia

Things to know about this person before jumping to conclusions:

1) She has been fired from every job she has held for at least the past 3 years, and she has held many jobs during that time period.

2) She has an amazing knack for looking completely innocent while creating chaos and setting people at each others throats.

3) After being fired from one of the jobs she threw a shrieking, punching, screaming fit that scared the security guard and front desk person so badly that she was committed to Bellevue Psychiatric for observation.

4) She does not have a Ph.d. but did study the history of new media and began to pursue a Ph.d in the history of airline stewardesses - not oppressed minorities.

5) She has a medical condition (which she has freely admitted to) which is known to cause spontaneous bruising.

6) Chrissie is a professional writer who generates spin for a living. She is the one who submitted all of these news leads about herself to the media outlets while deleting her own Twitter postings containing self-incriminating information.

7) She threatens to sue people a lot. A LOT.

jaycjay

I certainly buy all of that, because some anonymous commenter posted it on Gothamist.

wobbleSmith

which makes it exactly as trustworthy as gothamist news itself.

Julia

Things to know about this person before jumping to conclusions:

1) She has been fired from every job she has held for at least the past 3 years, and she has held many jobs during that time period.

2) She has an amazing knack for looking completely innocent while creating chaos and setting people at each others throats.

3) After being fired from one of the jobs she threw a shrieking, punching, screaming fit that scared the security guard and front desk person so badly that she was committed to Bellevue Psychiatric for observation.

4) She does not have a Ph.d. but did study the history of new media and began to pursue a Ph.d in the history of airline stewardesses - not oppressed minorities.

5) She has a medical condition (which she has freely admitted to) which is known to cause spontaneous bruising.

6) Chrissie is a professional writer who generates spin for a living. She is the one who submitted all of these news leads about herself to the media outlets while deleting her own Twitter postings containing self-incriminating information.

7) She threatens to sue people a lot. A LOT.

nik13

Gothamist should fire del Signore & give his job to that ex-HuffPo hussy.

snickerdoodle

I hope Ms. Brodigan sues and wins. She should not have been fired because she was assaulted by another one of NYC's finest arrogant cops. Hiding behind his religion is no excuse for being a bad cop.

Politically Correctness has become a monster that only feeding more hate. Good job, smarties.

Good job liberals!

RegoParker

Chrissie Brodigan, July 1st, to WPIX 11:

"I didn't notice he was Jewish," said Brodigan.

---------------------------------

Chrissie Brodigan, July 9th, OPEN LETTER to Gothamist:

"I did not say anything that any person, reasonable or not, could have interpreted to mean any reference whatsoever to the obvious religion of the cop who was manhandling me.

--------------------------

Chrissie - in which of these statements are you lying (again)?

Still waiting to see the photos of the bruises on your back, you know, after being punched there by Officer Witriol. I'm sure your "witnesses" will back that up, as well as your 'breast twisting'...

Glad youre recovered from your beating by three unknown, unnamed and uncharged fellow prisoners. Despite being on meds that cause brusing, you appeared completely unscathed the next day on TV. Congratulations on the speedy recovery!

jt10000

NannyState: I'd imagine they told her or it came up in conversation.

dadoc

She's annoying. Boring here, even at 100+ posts.

Back to a book for Dadoc. Have fun.

RegoParker

The guy taking the photos said he heard the threaten to "knock [her] around like a woman". Chrissie never said that anywhere. He also later stated that he was not there the whole time.

While he was there, he did snap this photo, which is on Gothamist:

http://gothamist.com/attachments/nyc_arts_john/070209arrest1.jpg

There's a woman in the photo. If it's not his girlfriend (who went to call the cops), then perhaps this is the mystery witness. Even if she's not Viane Delgado, she's another [unnamed] witness.

RegoParker

Chrissie herself admitted online to resisting arrest, behaving inappropriately, calling the officer "asshole" (she fails to report this in her letter, above). Then she goes on TV the next day after calling in sick, IIRC.

Seems to be more than enough reason to terminate someone, after she identifies herself as a Plum TV employee everywhere...

I don't think many companies would like their law-breaking (per Chrissie) VPs shouting "asshole" at cops doing their jobs.

jaycjay

There was neither an admission to nor a charge of resisting arrest.

RegoParker

FALSE.

http://twitter.com/chrissieb/status/2411938396

(Chrissie's Twitter site has been deleted, but this comment is still viewable via Google's cache:)

"I panicked and resisted the arrest"

jaycjay

Whether she used the term "resisted" is irrelevant. "Resisting arrest" has a legal definition. She was not charged with resisting arrest, because her actions in unsuccessfully trying to discourage it didn't meet that definiation.

She was given three citations. If she had "resisted arrest," she would also have been cited for that charge.

valeriob

Right. She textbook resisted arrest, and then wrote about it by saying she "resisted arrest", and you're still not sure?

jaycjay

Again, what term she uses to describe it is irrelevant. Her actions, as described in any of the accounts, do not equate to "textbook" resisting arrest. Which is why she was charged with disorderly conduct, not resisting.

Rfive

Sorry Chrissie. Not only do you have to go to court, now you've lost your job. It seems as if your have made poor choices (presenting your case on a BLOG? DIPSHIT!!!) and now you still have to go to court. We will never know what really happened, and it does not matter now. You have lost. Please move on (and possibly back to Kansas or wherever you are from.

RegoParker

Good point, "NannyState". Damage control is "some of my best friends are Jewish"...

And where are the photographs of the vicious back-punching Chrissie endured at the hands of the police officer?

Did the two "witnesses" corroborate her account of "breast twisting" and the punch in the back? Neither, amazingly, had nothing to say on that, but railed against the alleged "treat you like a lady" remark. Hmmm.

And where is the complaint and injury photos of the beatdown Chrissie complained to have suffered at the hands of three other prisoners? And the spitting? Was she tested for any diseases or vaccinated following? Or did it never happen? Or did she misremember that? Or was she having an anxiety attack at the time? Where is the rolling eyes icon?

Also funny (not in a good way) that Chrissie failed to tell everyone that she bruises easily but had no problem sending out the bicep bruise photos, suggesting that she was brutalized by the police.

Also funny that those two witnesses have zero photos of this alleged brutalization. Or breast twisting.

Please leave NYC Chrissie. There are too many here like you.

King Kong

I don't know what the hell tumblr is. Clearly she has bad judgment, can't stick with a decision and should not be trusted. Here is one of her posts -

http://chrissieb.tumblr.com/

Change

More than a few things lately have me thinking about change.

In my own life … the last year in particular, I changed:

… cities, moving from VA to New York, and

… relationships, going from single to married, and

married to single (nearly as quickly), and

… my hair changed from blonde to red to brown, and

… I changed apartments (twice) and jobs (3 times – ouch!), and

… went from regular coke to diet coke.

NannyState

How did she know "all her doctoral Advisors were jewish"? Did their names end in "witz", "lein", or "kin"? Did they invite her to temple? Or did she just assume? Either way, she's a screwball who deserved to get fired: just look at her idea of damage control.

dr zippy

It takes years to get a Ph.D. Over those years she would have spent a lot of time with her committee - taking classes from them, attending conferences with them, collaborating on research, going to departmental parties and outings, etc. Unless the professors were extremely circumspect their religion and ethnicity would not have been hidden.

RegoParker

Another thing that these "witnesses" said that no one seems the slightest bit bothered over is that Chrissie was very upset and "didnt seem like the type of person that would break the law" (or similar words.)

Who is the racist here? Do these words not offend anyone? Who does look like the type of person who would break the law? Please elaborate, all-knowing 'witness'..

Thank you in advance.

RegoParker

If you recall, Chrissie didn't go to work the following day because she said she was too injured (or something.) Yet she appeared on TV (seeming quite chipper!)... she also had the energy to photograph her small arm bruises and email to Gothamist and other blogs.

So, perhaps she was terminated for that reason.

As for all the other chatter here - first of all, this "equivocating" stuff makes ZERO sense when taken in context. Chrissie, in several interviews, initially said, "I dont recall" (making horrible ethnic slurs). She later said she had a panic attack. Finally, she claimed she didn't make any remarks (over a day after the incident.) Not very reassuring regarding her truthfulness...

As for these witnesses that "back up her story" - they actually don't. A guy who took photos and his girlfriend who left the scene to call 911 - said he wasn't there for the whole time - NEITHER one was. So for them to say she "absolutely" didnt utter those words is worthless.

Chrissie admitted on her now-deleted Twitter page that she acted inappropriately, that she freaked out, that she resisted arrest and that she didn't have her dog in a carrier. She walked away from an officer who tried repeatedly to talk to her. She the sat on the floor when he tried to cuff her after she, in her words, 'behaved inappropriately'...

She continues to smear the cop, and contradicts herself on the arrest and incident, now blaming the police for doing their job, and taking ZERO responsibility for her self-confessed violations.

Instead she tried to spin her stupidity into a woman-bashing incident because the officer asked her to behave like a lady.

GOOD for PlumTV. You got what you deserved, Chrissie. You need to take responsibility for your actions and apologize to the officer.

McFister

Arrested Pug Owner ALLEGEDLY Fired Over Anti-Semitic Allegation

FTJAMES

Chrissie has a case because she was mauled by a civil friggin servant and I don't give a shit what religion the guy is. You don't grab anyone particularly on the breasts or genitals. Also if she did, for the sake of argument say something out of line, anyone grabbing someones tits should not off be scott free. HELLO! First of all what was he bothering her for? Carrying a dog in a subway? Look we are getting really stupid in this country. Don't let assholes in charge using the bigotry card destroy Americans. That is just too much. I've heard people call each other all kinds of things and they dont' get fired or persecuted like this. The girl did nothing wrong and the NY Post is a slime paper. Fire the cop! He put his hands on a citizen of this country and I would hate to see how he "treats women" since that is what he said.

notyourfriend

And you were there? You're just as vapid as the press if you believe everything she says.

adeez

I followed the last thread on this story, and the same kinds of comments regarding suing her employer are present here.

One poor soul (I forgot whom) repeatedly said told them that at-will employees have no rights to a job. He/she was spot-on.

So, I know this'll be futile, but I'll give it a try: AT-WILL EMPLOYMENT MEANS YOU GET FIRED FOR NO REASON AT ALL, OR ALMOST ANY REASON UNDER THE SUN!!! Boss dislikes his coffee - you're fired. Boss had a fight with his mistress - you're fired. Yankees lost - you're fired.

The reason just doesn't have to be "discriminatory," which is a horrible, horrible term.

I normally wouldn't care. But I dealt with this issue quite often in my profession, and it is astonishing how many laypeople are unfamiliar with this concept.

So, I just hope all the non-lawyers who're so sure she has a case aren't the same ones who rail about tort reform and greedy lawyers. Oh, and I also hope they're union supporters, b/c their stance is very pro-union.

Oh, and that astute commenter also said that if she gets fired, then she'll have a stronger case against the NY ComPost, provided that they lied about the witness statement. Again, spot-on.

Now I wonder how many comments it'll take before another brilliant "you should sue your employer" comment.

jaycjay

Yeah, I was that "poor soul" trying in vain to correct the mistaken idea that an employer can be sued for firing someone without cause.

I've already tried again a couple of times in comments on this page.

One more time, then I'll give up on this particular effort to clear up a misconception about the law: whenever you've read about a wrongful termination lawsuit (or when you've seen it where most people get their "knowledge" about legal matters, on TV lawyer shows) it's either because:

1) there was a contract in place that specified terms of employment,

2) the employee was a member of a "protected class" and is alleging that the termination was because of his or her race, creed, sex, or other protected status, or

3) it happened in a state where there's some other legal protection.

But in NYS, employment is "at will." Other than the first two situations above, anyone can be fired at any time for any reason. No notice is required, nor is any form of compensation. By the same token, anyone can quit a job any time for any reason also without notice.

adeez

Yup - it was you. Nice effort.

I think many just can't wrap their heads around the at-will doctrine. It just "feels" wrong. Kinda like people think they are entitled to severance packages, when in fact, they're basically gifts to employees.

It's funny - it seems that there are more "armchair" lawyers than there are of any other profession. Sure, we non-architects like to opine on buildings' designs, just as we non-doctors tend to give random diagnoses.

But I never see the same type of fervor behind comments about other fields. People don't just think she has a case against her employer, they are absolutely fuckin certain! Amazing.

Perhaps you should copy that good summary you just gave and just paste it every ten comments or so.

Nyctini11

I'd still like to know what that officer meant by "If you're going to act like a woman I'm going to treat you like a woman."

As he bruised her up(I'm referencing the pics she provided when this first happened)and shoved her against the wall?? I wonder what else this guy thinks is ok to do to women....

I hope she sues him for assault, the NYPD for aiding and abetting or otherwise acting as his accomplice. This is just so wrong on so many levels.

pudeljung

BIG LAWSUIT

Chrissie, why did they tell you you were being dismissed? Because if it doesn't line up with their official statement (that it was NOT in fact for supposed anti semitic statements) then you got yourself a case.

NYPD should open the report.

nyorker555

Even if she might be a supreme flake, her firing from her job is worthy of a lawsuit.

hard times

you don't have to believe the BS in the Post to think she might be in the wrong here.

At first I agreed, the "act like a woman...treat you like a woman" line was misogynistic. But now think of it this way - maybe he means "treat you like a grown-up, rather than a child." It's clear from the photos that she's the one throwing a fit.

I can't say for sure about the bruises. If you resist against a cop, he is going to do what it takes to restrain you.

I just hope the WAHHHHMBULANCE gets here before her insurance runs out!

grandzu

#100!!

sucks to be her.

theevilone

If the Post printed it, shouldn't she be complaining about libel, not slander?

Billiamsburg

Getting fired for something appearing in the Post is like getting fired because your boss saw a name that looked similar to your written in a truck stop bathroom in Alabama.

pudeljung

this sucks some serious pug-stuff.

i don't think she said the shit. I think the NYPD and NY POST are bastards.

sorry, Chrissie - you are a loose canon but did not deserve this.

Rfive

Let PlumTV know what you think:

http://www.plumtv.com/contact.html

selenawrites

Between those photos of her bruises and her witnesses, i would think she has a pretty good case. This is an example of how one bad moment (pug throwing up) can spiral into a major life-altering hiccup. I think both the NYPD and the Post have some explaining to do...

militza

well it appears she has some mind-blowing insights into the Internet on youtube

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ip5YjB0KT2U

Edita

I want to know what is being done about the accusation, which is backed up by witnesses, that the officer repeatedly stated "If you act like a woman, I'm going to treat you like a woman." Why are more people not outraged by this blatantly sexist remark? Imagine if he had said: If you act like a black person, I'm going to treat you like a black person," or "If you act like a Muslim, I'm going to treat you like a Muslim." It's absolutely unacceptable behavior for a police officer. If this IS what he said, he should be taken off the streets, or placed into "sensitivity training" for the rest of the summer until he learns to keep his bigoted thoughts to himself. What's truly chilling is that if he did indeed make these remarks, he had zero awareness of how insane it was to say such a thing, even though there were plenty of witnesses around. He felt perfectly entitled to say these outrageous remarks.

hard times

I think you're overreacting. Don't prejudge the cop to be sexist. [even if you think most cops are, most Hasids are, whatever]

Take it at its face - he's offering to treat her like a woman - like an adult. It seems to me that she was behaving like a child for most of this encounter [and since] and obviously she turned down his offer.

gpoint

Chalk it up to Gothamist commentors being mostly male meatheads who love nothing more than to gang up on a woman and call her a "crazy cat lady." Where in the article did it say anything about cats?

She has a witness that has come forward and reiterated the statements made by the cop. While the mystery witnesses from the Post remain just that.

It just goes to show the continued anti-woman sentiment harbored on here.

wobbleSmith

just in case you were lumping me in with the "meatheads" (there's that insecurity again!), i happen to think all parties involved were assholes. that falls to:

- the cop

- chrissie b

- the pug

- john del signore

- the new york post

- the witnesses (actual or invented)

- most of us here today

that being said, chrissie definitely got screwed the most. but i also think that she has a pretty legitimate libel suit against the post. if only her lawyer could keep her from making public statements that could later be used against her.

gpoint

You got a crush on me?

Either way, thanks for clarifying, asshole (you said it, not me)

valeriob

To paraphrase Tangent, who let you out of the kitchen?

Edita

Dear lost soul,

If "who let you out of the kitchen" is the best you can come up with, I truly feel sorry for you. It can't be a good sign that you are expressing your blatant misogyny to strangers on the internet. I cannot even begin to imagine the chamber of horrors that is your poor, little, lost soul. Everyone, please send a virtual hug to valeriob and all the other misogynists spewing their hateful comments. Clearly, they need all the love they can get.

valeriob

I'll give you a few days to let your hormones reset.

Why are you insisting that an Officer who Allegedly made 'misogynistic' remarks should be 'taken off the street' while a person (yes, a woman) who ADMITTEDLY broke the law shouldn't be?

Even a feminazi like you couldn't actually believe that.

wobbleSmith

are you offended by the statement "if you act like a man, i'll treat you like a man"?

why is acting like a woman a bad thing?

oh, i forgot, he's a hassid, so he must hate women.

your assumption, not mine.

hotstepper

since gothamist appears to care so much about this crazy lady they'll give her a position with them.

how 'bout it gothamist?

KiljoyWasHere

Please god no. Her letter above is not well written and conveys not a small amount of hysteria.

valeriob

Interesting angle, but... News, Arts & Events, Food, and Pug Corner?

Pass.

JUST A NORMAL GUY (THE ORIGINA

WELL IT JUST GOES TO SHOW THE WACKED-OUT PRIORITY'S OF NYC LIB'S WHEN THERE MORE CONCERNED WITH THE RIGHTS OF A PUG DOG THAN THE SUFFERING OF THE JEWISH POEPLE. I GUESS NO BODY TOLD YOU THAT HAMASS DOES'NT LIKE DOGS

felixthecat2

ALL DAY ALL NIGHT guy?

Clarice City

It says he's the original. HANCUFFS!! ALL DAY ALL NIGHT!!

bklynbagel

plum tv has no money.. im sure they were looking for an excuse to lighten their load a little bit. this is bad times for small networks

Ben K

Has anyone else tried to unearth Viane Delgado? A few cursory database searches reveals no one with that name in the city or state.

wobbleSmith

well, it was the post, so it was probably Diane, if she's real at all!

D/VIANE: With a dee

REUVEN: Vee?

D/VIANE: Dee.

REUVEN: V-I-A-N-E. Great thanks for the info!

Ben K

Could be. There are a few Diane Delgados in Brooklyn. Has anyone ID'd at what station this took place?

wobbleSmith

y'know what would have cleared this all up? a cell phone video.

oh there's not one? this is the ONE THING that happened involving the police that wasn't recorded by some anti-cop crusader?

really?

REALLY?

they have a clear shot of former officer pogan PWNING that critical mass dink, like it was set up. and no one flipped on their camera for this melee?

ergo couldn't have been that bad.

melanarchy

why would it have to be an "anti-cop crusader" who filmed it, why not a "pro-cop defender." Or are you admitting that cops always do wrong so videos of them can only be made public by "anti-cop crusaders"

wobbleSmith

cops are people and people mostly suck (just read a few other comments -- i mean, i obviously DON'T suck, but i digress).

my point was merely that whenever there is a Cop Gone Wild these days, there is usually a video of it. it could have just as easily been a pro-cop defender. those just happen to be pretty rare 'round these parts.

i'm sort of in the middle if you were curious. which you weren't.

Manitoba

I cannot attest to your suck-level, but you like Tony Millionaire, so you must be partially ok.

gpoint

We're talking about Times Square in the evening, full of tourists versus the Bedford L stop in the afternoon.

If it was during rush hour, I think you can safely say there would be video.

wobbleSmith

work hours don't apply to the bedford L stop. it's always full of folks. particularly folks who hate cops.

and i hate cops as much as the next guy. it's always like BOO! gun in my face. deal with it, plebian! i can shoot you if i want!

i should get a gun.

gpoint

You obviously don't take that train/get out at that stop during non-peak hours, so please stop speaking like someone who does

wobbleSmith

get a job.

gpoint

Luckily, I have one.

Just accept that you're wrong and move on.

wobbleSmith

nope! because one admission of wrongness is a totally admission of being wrong about everything!!!

i'm still living in the bush administration. sorry. bad headspace.

valeriob

I'm pretty sure when she was yelling "call the cops, call the cops" with 5 officers surrounding her, she kind of wrote herself off.

Anonymous Lost Cause

Great, nice to see that so many people here believe the NY Post's one mysterious witness (as opposed to the number of other non-mysterious witnesses who back up this woman's story). Because if there is anything worth believing in (and reflexively defending to a bunch of strangers on a blog!) it is a tabloid written by and for freaked-out meatheads.

valeriob

We're actually basing our comments on mostly self-published public information on her, not what the paper claims.

Who reads the newspaper anymore? I can't find today's news on it anywhere!

Anonymous Lost Cause

You have replied to nearly every comment on this thread. You said you are "over it" and yet you are full of angry opinions about this woman. You are exactly the type of freaked-out meathead I had in mind . . .

valeriob

Just so you know this is Part IV of the saga.

In part I I actually defended her, but changed my mind soon after new information became available.

You think you can just come out of freaking nowhere and make some retarded assumption without doing your homework?

now gtfo with your sandy vagina.

nomnomnom

I'm not anti-semite, I have Jewish friends!

I'm no racist, I have black friends!

wobbleSmith

PLUM must have been looking for an out with Chrissie Brodigan.

Bernie Madoff-Goetz

If she's always been so concerned about the plight of disadvantaged minorities, why did she work for a company dedicated to promoting Aspen and The Hamptons--two of the premier hideaways for affluent whites?

keepdiscoevil

Did you purchase your high horse from Target or Wal-Mart?

notyourfriend

Chrissie goes through jobs like water. From what I can gather so far, she's been asked to leave her jobs at Washingtonian, NY Magazine, Meetup.com, HuffPo and Plum. All in the last 3 years.

Clearly there's way more to her getting fired at Plum than this stupid subway incident. Bottom line: the problem is Chrissie.

And for the record, she has cleared the air that she does have cystic fibrosis. There's your easy bruising right there.