August 28, 2008
NYPD Defends Ejecting Sox Fan from Yankee Stadium During "God Bless America"
The NYCLU seems inclined to follow through with last year's promise to sue the Yankees over their policy of confining fans to their seats during the national anthem and "God Bless America," which is played during the seventh inning stretch. Yesterday Red Sox fan Bradford Campeau-Laurion, a Queens resident, told us about his rough ejection from Yankee stadium at the hands of the NYPD after he tried to go to the men's room during the seventh inning's moment of mandatory nationalism Monday night.
Donna Lieberman, Executive Director of the NYCLU, tells CBS 2 that "because they are enforcing a rule of that imposes political correctness through refusing to let somebody go to bathroom while a patriotic song is playing, that violates Constitutional rights." But Michael C. Dorf, a constitutional law professor at Columbia Law School, disagrees; he told the Times last year that “it doesn’t violate the Constitution, because the Yankees are not the government. If they were a municipally owned team, you could have an issue because the team would be a state actor.
A spokesman for Yankee Stadium is referring inquiries to the NYPD and calling it "a police matter." A statement from the NYPD reads, "The officers observed a male standing on his seat, cursing, using inappropriate language and acting in a disorderly manner while reeking of alcohol, and decided to eject him rather than subject others to his offensive behavior."
Campeau-Laurion says that he only had two beers during the game, which he attended with a Yankees season ticket holder who says the police are – make sure you're sitting down – lying! He tells CBS 2: "That's ridiculous. That's completely false." But until some videotape surfaces, it's their word against the NYPD.
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This guy would become broke trying to get drunk at Yankee Stadium.
The Yankees are indeed a privately owned team, but boy howdy did we give them tons of tax breaks, property, and funding for new a stadium.
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Awful survey people! You're asking us schleps to define constitutional rights, and then in your answers you're asking for an opinion about Yankees policy. I mean, I know this is just a blog and all, but come on.
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This doesnt apply to the situation -
“it doesn’t violate the Constitution, because the Yankees are not the government. If they were a municipally owned team, you could have an issue because the team would be a state actor."
Because the man was thrown out by the NYPD - a municipal/goverment actor. You can say bs like the Yankees can do what they want when they are a private business, but the fact is the land is state owned, the stadium is partially funded by the state and apparently the security to the rules that the Yankees make up are carried out by the state...
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The Military Sports Entertainment Industrial Complex...
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If he was thrown out by Yankees Security, it wouldn't be an issue. I mean, they'd be shitty and crappy with their rules, but it wouldn't be an issue of Constitutionality.
But he was thrown out by the NYPD.
Man, the NYPD sucks.
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Can't you please word these questions to your poll better, or give additional cogent choices.
That is, both answers are correct, IMHO.
It is constitutional because it is private, but it is nevertheless a ridiculous policy.
A similar poll earlier this week had such a Hobbesian-type choice.
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It is a poorly written poll. The correct answer is "Yes", but it IS "ridiculous to chain people into the seating areas during the 7th inning stretch." Unfortunately, whether or not something is "ridiculous" does not necessarily indicate Constitutionality.
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wtf is wrong with police in this country?
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Cops don't like anyone who doesn't look or act like them.
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And they inflict punishment with their handcuffing tactics.
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But Michael C. Dorf, a constitutional law professor at Columbia Law School, disagrees; he told the Times last year that “it doesn’t violate the Constitution, because the Yankees are not the government. If they were a municipally owned team, you could have an issue because the team would be a state actor.
End of debate.
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Let's go to videotape!!
ugh, if only......
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What? the land of the free? whoever told you that is your enemy!
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While he was thrown out by NYPD, they (theoretically) were just carrying out the wishes of the property owner. I'm not sure there's an argument there, unless there is some way to prove that the NYPD officers acted without any instruction from the owners.
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Easiest solution all around: stop playing the damn song. Every other major league team stopped it long ago. Grow up Steinbrenner.
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People talk about needing a handgun for security ...I think these days you damn sure better have your video cam with you at all times
if you want to defend yourself.
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sigh...the caliber of the posts on this site are pretty poor -
folks the NYPD is supposed to enforce actual LAWS of the state not the RULES of George Steinbrenners business.
Thats why its unconstitutional
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Well if people would STOP going to Yankees games maybe they would take a hint. As it is seems like all talk/outrage, no action. As usual.
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I hate the Yankees and I hate the NYPD.
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I really hope the NYPD assholes are reading this blog. I hope they can get just a small taste of the rage and fury that We The People feel towards their fascist thuggery.
Fuck.
The.
Police.
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End of debate.
According to one idiot with an academic credential from Columbia.
The debate is whether a municipal police force paid by municipal taxes can act as a private security force for a private institution... and enforce capricious rules that violate ordinary citizen's constitutional rights.
The constitutional lawyers are salivating over this one. Do you think the ACLU or the NYCLU takes just any case? They sure didn't take many risks going after Bush in the last eight years. The ACLU takes the cases that they think they can win... EASILY.
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Hitler wanted everyone to look and act the same too.
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Fuck the Yankees. And Fuck NYPD.
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A statement from the NYPD reads, "The officers observed a male standing on his seat, cursing, using inappropriate language and acting in a disorderly manner while reeking of alcohol, and decided to eject him rather than subject others to his offensive behavior."
And that cyclist who was knocked off his bike last month in Times Square tried to run over the cop - at least that's what the NYPD tried to claim. Despite videotape evidence to the contrary.
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Can I be forcibly removed from my living room - cuz I turn that shit off directly as soon as I hear "GaaaahhhhD."
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A statement from the NYPD reads, "The officers...decided to eject him rather than subject others to his offensive behavior."
If this is so important to the NYPD, why didn't they remove the Yankees from the stadium? :-)
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Considering the prices that fucking team charges for tickets to that dump, the NYPD should have escorted him to the bathroom and wiped his ass as well. Since Giuliani adopted this team as his own, the gestapo has been in full force. But the 7th inning stretch? Isn't that time when you are supposed to take a leak? Whatever happened to Take Me Out To The Ball Game? Fuck MLB and those asshole cops...
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godless traitors to the IMPERIAL US EMPIRE should not only be handcuffed by the Fascist Security Forces(aka ny's finest), but also waterboarded and then executed....
by the way, will you people forget about all this "constitutional rights" bullshit? that's so 18th century...
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Porsche, you're just about the last person I would have expected to trigger Godwin's law . . .
And while I think we can all agree that the Yankees overreached, anyone trying to make this into a constitutional violation is resting on a slender reed. The NYPD was responding to what was, in essence, a trespassing complaint (once the fan had been unwelcomely lingering in the Stadium, from the perspective of the Yankees); and their mere involvement does not make the ejection a state action.
Finally, in response to poster no. 21, anyone who would assert that the ACLU and its ilk have been lying low the last 8 years has not been paying attention as civil libertarians have repeatedly challenged, among other things, the Patriot Act, the detention of enemy combatants, and warrantless wiretapping . . .
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If one is an Atheist, it could be uncomfortable to be forced to listen to anything dealing with God.
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Unfortunately Prof. Dorf is no longer a professor at Columbia Law School - he's now at Cornell. And I can assure #21 that he is not an "idiot with an academic credential from Columbia." He's a noted constitutional law scholar, and, contrary to said commenter's apparent belief, actually has done a good amount of work on the ACLU side of many cases.
Said commenter also fundamentally misunderstands the ACLU, as they don't just take cases they can win "EASILY." See, for example, some of the recent NSA cases, etc.
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"The officers...decided to eject him rather than subject others to his offensive behavior."
That brings up a serious dichotomy. Can a member of the NYPD eject himself?
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When police are in the wrong they always charge someone with being drunk, disorderly conduct or with resisting arrest.
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the Patriot Act, the detention of enemy combatants, and warrantless wiretapping . . .
Constitutional lawyers got shut down effectively and quickly by the Bush administration. As much as I disagree with their ideological positions The National Lawyers Guild went further out on a limb than the face saving ACLU did during the last eight years. But you can send them a check if you'd like or shell out some cash to a kid from the ACLU Youth Brigade they've unleashed on every city street.
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But he was thrown out by the NYPD.
The NYPD is hired privately for security by Yankee Stadium. The stadium is not city owned, it's private property.
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Click your heels, stand up straight and salute ze motherland.
God bless America indeed...
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It doesn't matter if the stadium is private property or not, any more than it matters whether privately owned lunch counters in the South have the right to violate people's civil rights by refusing to serve them based on their skin color.
Kate Smith's "God Bless America" always brings out the piss in me, anyway. Maybe the New York Yankees, Inc., and the NYPD would prefer that we pee in place?
Do they require fans to stand as well?
Will this fall under a new "Mandatory Nationalism Enforcement Act"? Maybe they will use cattleprods, tasers and mace to force people to stand and not to pee.
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Are we to the point that a trip to jail is cheaper and more enjoyable than a night at the ballpark? At least you can swear when you're in lockup.
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You know, I never have this problem at Shea.
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Will Steinbrenner reserve the right to throw anyone out who doesn't know the words to the song, or sing in tune?
Sue, sue, sue. Sue the Yankees. Sue the NYPD.
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Does anyone actually believe this shit? C'mon. use Common Sense. DO you think the police and the Yankess could actually control 50,000 people's bladders during that inning? hell no!
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#35:
Yankee Stadium is owned by the city of New York. The Yankees baseball team leases it from NYC.
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is this news???
NO... you pay for a ticket to access private property - if it was a private security guard this wouldn't even be news...
that's why NYPD shouldn't be in the stadium... they should only be outside... let them raise prices another 20-40% to cover the security costs... But then again I have a feeling they'll just let people pee whenever they want...
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I thought the stadium is owned by the city? don't they pay rent to the city? I thought I heard they were not paying either rent or taxes. one or the other were delinquent.
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who are these 'Yankees' you speak of?
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You know, I never have this problem at Shea.
People actually go there?
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Are you all going to swallow this?
You SHEEPLE!
The Yankees ARE the state. Please refer to Zeitgeist the movie. Google it and watch it...NAO!
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At least we won't be having this problem during the playoffs.
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The poll needs an option "no, they're not violating anyone's Constitutional rights, but it's still ridiculous."
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This whole thing is almost as ridiculous as those Yankee fans that bring their own American flag to the stadium and hold it up during God Bless America.
It's nice to have some prode in your country, but come on, you really need to bring a flag to a baseball game?
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The Yankees should be embarassed about this whole situation. They are already embarassed about their crappy season. Ugh.
I hope they change the policy.