October 8, 2005

Today it is a very rainy day here in New York. Earlier today, I walked to the store to buy a newspaper (around 1pm – yes, in the afternoon). On my way back home, I was about to enter the code to open the main door into the building when two police officers ran up to me and told me to drop everything (in this case my umbrella and the newspaper than I’d just bought), turn around and put my hands up. While one of the police officers patted me down (asking if I was carrying anything that I should not be), the other officer had his hand on his gun. After being frisked, one of the officers explained that I matched the description of someone who just robbed someone on the 2nd floor of my building. Yes, I was entering the building (not exiting), but let me not quibble on minor details. A few minutes later the officer explained that the person they were looking for had a gun. Although, the officer just finished patting me down (no gun), and was holding my driver’s license, I was asked to stand at the door of my home like I was a common criminal. They were waiting for conformation that it was okay to let me go. Later, the confirmation came, The second officer returned to tell the other officer that they needed to look for a guy in a car (I forgot the name of the car).

I did not realize that there were many (or any) overweight, balding, half blind, goofy looking, geeky African American criminals walking into the scene of a crime….now I do….and so do my neighbors.

I supposed that after all of this “misunderstanding” was cleared up, I should have mentioned the drug dealer on the first floor (my father seems to always be complaining about) and the strangers that come and go like that apartment was the local Kmart. And would it have been proper to complain to the officers about those same strangers who use the elevator like a bathroom (urine on an almost weekly basis, and the occasional feces deposit [2x]). Well, what does a stupid looking criminal know.