Atlantic Yards Opponents Plan To Arrest Bruce Ratner

Opponents of the Atlantic Yards project have tried to halt the mega-project with murals, lawsuits, and protests. On Wednesday, they'll try a new technique: arresting Atlantic Yards developer Bruce Ratner. Following the closure of a Prospect Heights homeless shelter last week to make room for the $4.9 billion arena and high-rise development, a group of anti-Atlantic Yards activists announced that they will make a citizen's arrest of Ratner, according to Curbed.

While we would rather arrest Ratner for the moral crime of closing a desperately needed homeless shelter on Martin Luther King's birthday, and during Haiti relief efforts, we will instead be arresting him to stand charges of bribing a public official in the State of New York, where such activity is against the law.

The anti-Atlantic Yards activists say their goal "is to get the Pacific Dean Family Homeless Shelter re-opened until Spring," and though they acknowledge that "[n]obody is going to physically abduct Mr. Ratner," they "expect him to surrender to a police officer, in our presence, and go with us to be charged by Attorney General Cuomo." According to the excerpts of the press release available on the blog Found in Brooklyn, it's not exactly clear which public official Ratner is accused of bribing, though the anti-Atlantic Yards activists want Cuomo to return any contributions he has received from the developer. "Should Ratner elude us we will request that a warrant be issued immediately for his arrest, and that he be extradited from any place in the world that he may choose to run to."

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By Ben Muessig in News on January 25, 2010 6:15 PM

Comments [rss]

MFer

The world won't change with stupidity either.

books

the commenters on this thread are the sad ones.

Here are people standing up against an OBVIOUS injustice but its too much of a ruckus for you. you'd rather have the status quo, the rich developers taking peoples homes to build corporate stadiums and luxary apartments, anything besides a bunch of people fighting the system.

The world won't change with apathy.

NannyState

Yeah, stupid us: citizen arrests will change the world.

MT

The people fighting Atlantic Yards have officially jumped the shark. It almost makes me want to take Ratner's side because these people are such idiots.

brooklyngiggities

God, could these people get any more lame. Clueless as to what a citizen's arrest even is. I can deal with Ratner building the complex. Eminent domain these yuppie scumsters out of bklyn.

defmob

Yuppie scumsters? Who... the people at the homeless shelter?

Ratner is the yuppie scumster.

Dude69

I've been trying to conduct citizen's arrest of unruly hipsters for years to no avail, and had to settle for some old fashion NYPD brutality. Good luck with a rich, powerful and connected developer, losers!

Thinky Think

They aren't cops so those walkie talkies will stay put.They don't have enough authority to care out those fetishes.:-)

squatch

lame

reeks of sad,sad desperation

NannyState

If, during the "arrest", they should happen to lose a walkie talkie up his ass, I'm all for it.

jchez

BTW, a citizen's arrest can only be done in NY if you witness the crime or, if a felony, if the crime has actually been committed. No room for error if you didn't witness it.

Any person may arrest another person (a) for a felony when the latter has in fact committed such felony, and (b) for any offense when the latter has in fact committed such offense in his presence. (N.Y.C.L. 140.30).

jchez

I can see an arrest taking place. . . Of the morons trying to do this. The charges will be assault, battery and maybe false imprisonment, if they get that far. On top of the criminal charges, they'll be liable for civil damages.

hunter.blatherer

I've always wanted to do a citizens arrest of a law-breaking police officer.

Thinky Think

So they are going to go on his job site where there are men weilding heavy tools with just accusations to arrest him? Hahaha ediotas! I see a possible beat down for the citizens.