NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) — Things turned violent early Saturday morning as partiers packed Washington Square Park.
The park was packed Saturday afternoon with people enjoying themselves and no bad behavior going on, but area residents say it becomes a very different scene after dark.
For weeks, people who live nearby have been complaining about partygoers blasting music, drinking, doing drugs, urinating in public and riding loud mopeds through the crowd.
Some residents also complain about crime and violence.
As CBS2’s Natalie Duddridge reports, just before 1 a.m. Saturday, an hour after the park is supposed to close, police say a 42-year-old man began waving a Taser at a group of people and had a large knife.
Officers say some people started to run from him and a 43-year-old woman was knocked down and trampled. She was treated at a local hospital for minor injuries.
The man was arrested.
Police, politicians and the community have been meeting to talk about how to stop the chaos.
A temporary 10 p.m. curfew was attempted, but there has been backlash over what public space is for.
“They should have a curfew. Safety is very, very important. People, tourists won’t come to New York unless you feel safe,” Richie Firestone said.
“It’s New York City. You can’t really complain about a city that’s always awake. There’s always going to be something crazy happening. There’s always something going on. If you don’t like it, you shouldn’t be here,” another person said.
“People need to get this pandemic out of their system, right? So everyone’s restless. They’re like, oh, finally I have my freedom back,” a woman named Adela said.
Signage at the park says it’s open from 6 a.m. to midnight. Friday night, police did not appear to enforce a midnight closure, witnesses say.
Saturday evening, officers were seen pulling up and lining up barricades as a preventive measure.
from CBS New York https://ift.tt/2Izr88c
