Amy Cooper, the Karen in Central Park who attempted to frame a Black man by calling the police, was charged with filing a false report. The crime is punishable by up to a year in jail.
Cooper was seen on camera calling the police and stating an “African-American man” was threatening her life. The man, Christian Cooper, had asked the lady to put her dog on a leash leading to the phone call.
The New York Times reports the video of Amy Cooper has been seen over 40 million times and the charges appear to be the first that a white person will receive for wrongfully calling the police for a complaint against a Black person.
“We are strongly committed to holding perpetrators of this conduct accountable,” said Cyrus R. Vance Jr., the Manhattan district attorney.
Arraignment for Cooper will be on October 14. If she is convicted she could receive a conditional discharge, community service, or counseling as opposed to jail time.
“She lost her job, her home, and her public life,” Cooper’s defense attorney Robert Barnes said. “Now some demand her freedom? How many lives are we going to destroy over misunderstood 60-second videos on social media?”
