Robert Stolarik, a freelancer who works with the New York Times, was taking pictures for the paper when he was brutally arrested by the NYPD. He was in the Bronx doing street interviews when a fight started, and officers arrested a 15-year-old girl.
A police officer told him to stop taking pictures. When he identified himself as a journalist for the NY Times, another police officer came over, took his camera, and "slammed" it into his face. He asked for their badge numbers, and at that moment they pushed him to the ground, kicking him in the back and resulting in him getting bruises and cuts on his arms, legs, and face.
This is not the first time the New York Police Department has violently tried to stop journalists, nor will it be the last unless we do something about it. Please tell the NYPD not to arrest journalists for taking photos!
Dear New York Police Department,
I am writing to you today concerning an incident that happened with Robert Stolarik, a journalist associated with the New York Times, and the NYPD.
Stolarik was in the Bronx doing street interviews when a fight started. He was taking pictures of a 15-year-old girl getting arrested when he was pushed to the ground, suffering scrapes and bruises on his face, legs, and arms, and had his camera slammed into his face. He was then arrested.
This is unacceptable -- journalists should not be prosecuted for taking pictures. Please change NYPD's policy to reflect this.
Thank you for your time.
