Amy Cooper, a white woman who called the police on a Black bird watcher in New York City’s Central Park, has been charged with a misdemeanor, WABC-TV reported.
Back in May, as ABC News reported at the time, Cooper caused an international stir when she got into a confrontation with Christian Cooper, who is of no relation to her. Christian Cooper, a comic book artist and Harvard-educated ornithologist, was bird-watching at a section of Central Park known as The Ramble. That particular section of the park is home to “delicate” wildlife, and upon noticing that Amy Cooper’s dog was in a plant bed and not on a leash, he tried to lure it out using dog treats and asked its owner to put the animal on a leash.
However, instead of doing as she was asked, Amy Cooper threatened to call the police on the bird watcher and tell them that “there’s an African American man threatening my life.”
On Monday, prosecutors announced that she’s been charged with falsely reporting an incident in the third degree, a misdemeanor, according to ABC News . She’s been issued a notice to appear in court and will be arraigned on October 14.
District Attorney Cy Vance Jr. said in a statement that this kind of conduct won’t be tolerated.
“At this time I would like to encourage anyone who has been the target of false reporting to contact our Office. We are strongly committed to holding perpetrators of this conduct accountable,” he said.
The legal fallout comes on the heels of other punishments Amy Cooper has endured since the incident. She has also been fired from her job at investment management company Franklin Templeton. She also briefly forfeited her dog to an animal-rescue organization after concerns were raised about its welfare. The animal was later returned to her after it was deemed that it was safe and healthy.
As for Christian Cooper, he later noted that the matter of unleashed dogs roaming around The Ramble has been a problem for a long time.
“It’s posted all over the Ramble — dogs are supposed to be on a leash at all times — but unfortunately, we’ve had a problem with this for many, many years,” he said.
Christian Cooper recorded the incident — parts of which can be seen here — and posted it on social media, where it quickly went viral.
Amy Cooper became the latest addition to an ever-growing list of white women — derisively given the nickname “ Karen ” — who were caught on video harassing or even calling the police on Black people for doing mundane things or otherwise behaving poorly in public.
