A Harlem resident is suing the city of New York for $2.1 million after he was issued a ticket for giving an NYPD officer the finger. In October 2011, 22-year-old Aneury Peralta says that he and an unidentified detective got into a minor spat while both were stuck behind a garbage truck on East 107th street.
Peralta's attorney says his client tried to slide into a parking spot, but was met with obnoxious honking. This led him to do what "virtually everyone does in New York"—give the other driver the finger. The other driver got out of his car, then opened Peralta's door and ordered him to do it again. So, Peralta gave him the finger again.
That's when Peralta says the detective identified himself as a member of the NYPD, pushed him and "violently removed [Peralta's] key from the ignition" to the point of breaking it. The detective summoned backup, and two other officers arrived to give Peralta a ticket for disorderly conduct.
The ticket was dismissed, but Peralta says that three officers and a sergeant came to his family's bodega and demanded to his see his license three weeks later. According to the lawsuit, when Peralta was informed that there was a warrant out for his arrest, he attempted to call his brother via cell phone. He was immediately arrested for resisting arrest.
Looks like the city's about to pay for the actions of one sensitive cop. It wouldn't be the first time.
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