NYPD often punishes its cops by transferring them to undesirable precincts or in such a way as to increase their commuting time between home and the workplace.
One would think that a cop stationed in an Orthodox Jewish neighborhood in Brooklyn would be somewhat familiar with the Sabbath restrictions placed on observant Jews. He could have given the rabbi a citation by asking him to spell out his name and address without having him commit a sin by writing them down.
COP WHO TICKETED BROOKLYN RABBI ON SABBATH FOR JAYWALKING TRANSREERED
Jewish scripture prevents observant Jews from writing or forming any meaningful characters on the Sabbath
by Joe Kemp
New York Daily News
December 22, 2010
An NYPD police officer was transferred just weeks after he ticketed a Brooklyn rabbi for jaywalking and forced him to break the Sabbath, officials said.
The unidentified officer slapped Rabbi Sholom Emert, 27, with the summons after he crossed Kings Highway near E. 15th St. about 5:30 p.m. on Nov. 26, officials said.
But Emert couldn't provide any identification and asked the cop if they could go to his nearby home in Midwood to get his license. The officer instead ordered Emert to violate Jewish law by writing down his name and address.
"There was no reason to force this observant Jew to violate the Sabbath by forcing him to write," said City Councilman David Greenfield (D-Brooklyn) on the floor of the City Council last month.
Sources said the officer was transferred to the 25th Precinct stationhouse in East Harlem.
2 comments:
The cop was insensitive, sure...but does the Sabbath prevent a rabbi from carrying identification?
It does prevent him from having any money on his person. Thus it follows that he left his wallet and ID at home.
I had an uncle in New York who was orthodox and strictly observant from sundown Fridays to to sundown Saturdays. During that time he and the other members of his houselhold could not switch the lights on or off - they turned the lights on before sunset on Fridays and they stayed on all druing the daytime Saturdays.
They could not listen to the radio - they didn't have a TV because that was in the early days of television. Their activities were limited to praying and eating. They could not turn the water on or off and shitting was a problem because they could not flush the toilets.
They could not use any form of transportation during the Sabbath. That's why Orthodox Jews live in clusters within easy walking distance of their synagogues.
Now if you're a cop - a gentile cop - assigned to a beat in an orthodox neighborhood, you would have had to be aware of those religious customs. That leads me to believe that this particular cop was an asshole.
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