The NYPD has reassigned an officer whose angry tirade against an Uber driver went viral
Screenshot/YouTube
Patrick Cherry, previously a detective in the NYPD's elite Joint Terrorism Task Force, has been transferred, effective immediately, according to a statement from NYPD Commissioner William J. Bratton.
"No good cop should watch that without a wince," Bratton said in the statement.
"Because all good cops know that officer just made their jobs a little bit harder. In that kind of encounter, anger like that is unacceptable. In any encounter, discourtesy and obscene language like that is unacceptable. That officer's behavior reflected poorly on everyone who wears our uniform."
On Monday afternoon, an officer pulled over an Uber driver, identified only as Humayun, for a traffic violation and then went on an angry tirade, making fun of the Uber driver's broken English and mocking him.
"The only reason you're not in handcuffs going to jail is because I have things to do," Cherry said.
The entire interaction was filmed by the Uber driver's passenger, Sanjay Seth, and was uploaded to YouTube.
"Police abuse of Uber driver in New York City," Seth says in the video's description.
"In an unmarked car, the policeman was allegedly attempting to park without using his blinker at a green light. (His reverse lights weren't on. Likely double parked without hazards on.) The Uber driver pulled around and gestured that he should use his blinker, casually and non-offensively, and kept driving us. The policeman quickly pulls up behind us and this is what happens."
Seth later testified against the officer once the video went viral:
Just gave testimony to CCRB. The investigation is in their hands. Here's to a quick, fair, and thorough resolution to this incident.
- Sanjay Seth (@sanjayseth) April 1, 2015
Cherry says to the driver: "I don't know where you're coming from, where you think you're appropriate in doing that; that's not the way it works. How long have you been in this country?"
"Stop it with your mouth, stop it with your, 'For what, sir?'" Cherry says to the Uber driver. "Stop it ... and realize the three vehicle and traffic law violations you committed."
The unmarked car Cherry used to pull over the Uber driver doesn't belong to the NYPD, the Daily News reports. Cherry was on his way to work after seeing another police officer, who was in the hospital.
The Uber driver filed a complaint after the three-minute interaction, the Daily News reports.
Here's Uber's statement from spokesperson Matt Wing:
"The behavior in the video is wrong and unacceptable and we appreciate the NYPD investigating the incident. We are in touch with our driver-partner who was subjected to this terrible experience and will continue to provide any support he needs."
You can watch the full video below (the video contains graphic language):
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