A Belligerent Alec Baldwin Busted in NYC, Mayor Calls it ‘Unfortunate’
From the cover of a magazine this year, the actor Alec Baldwin threatened to leave New York City. The place has changed, he said.
As he discovered on Tuesday, for instance, some police officers no longer recognize him. Or if the two young officers did, it did not deter them from writing him up for riding his bicycle the wrong way on Fifth Avenue near 16th Street, or from taking him to the precinct station house when he could not provide identification.
The police said Mr. Baldwin became belligerent with the officers, who soon placed him in handcuffs and charged him with disorderly conduct. At the 13th Precinct station house, the commander confirmed his identity, the police said, based on Mr. Baldwin’s “prior police contacts.”
Indeed, the entire episode played into the melodrama that periodically swirls around the actor when he steps outside, from altercations with paparazzi to being kicked off an airplane for refusing to shut off his smartphone.
He was released before noon, with two Criminal Court summonses, whereupon he took to Twitter to denounce the city as “a mismanaged carnival of stupidity that is desperate for revenue and anxious to criminalize behavior once thought benign.”
Countless bicyclists ride the wrong way every day in New York; few end up in handcuffs for it. Joe Rizzo, a doorman near the scene of the arrest, said such behavior on that traffic-clogged stretch was common. “If they had an undercover officer to write tickets for bicyclists going the wrong way or on the sidewalk, they’d write 50 to 60 tickets in an eight-hour shift,” he said.
What elevated a simple traffic summons to handcuffs was Mr. Baldwin’s lack of identification and his reaction, which the police termed disorderly. Though New Yorkers are not required to carry identification, a police officer can demand it when writing a summons. If none is provided, the person receiving the summons can be taken to the station house until his identity is established.
Arguing with the police, they said, does not help.
On Twitter later, Mr. Baldwin posted a message with the name and badge number of one of the officers who “arrested me and handcuffed me for going the wrong way on Fifth Ave.”
The disregard for traffic rules and wiseguy attitude, as described by the police, suggested the worst stereotypes of city bicyclists. But for most people who were interviewed, it was about Mr. Baldwin.
“I think that the whole thing is more a reflection on him than on biking and the state of biking,” said Caroline Samponaro, director of bicycle advocacy at Transportation Alternatives. “He’s in the headlines a lot, and it’s usually something unpleasant.”
Or, as he wrote in New York magazine in February: “I just can’t live in New York anymore.”
The commotion, which began about 10:15 a.m., drew some notice, with photographs on InTouch magazine’s website roughly an hour later.
“I just thought it was an old senior citizen,” said Eddie Cacho, a stylist at Dramatics NYC, a hair salon on Fifth Avenue. “If I’d known it was him, I would have taken a picture.”
By
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio is calling the arrest of actor Alec Baldwin"unfortunate."
Baldwin was arrested Tuesday for biking the wrong way on a Manhattan street and allegedly clashing with police.
De Blasio on Wednesday called the arrest an "unfortunate situation" but said he respected the actor.
The mayor added that he felt Baldwin has said some "important and thoughtful things" about New York City.
The "30 Rock" actor was an early supporter of de Blasio. But the mayor had distanced himself from Baldwin after some recent high-profile incidents.
In one, the actor allegedly called a tabloid photographer a gay slur. Baldwin, who lives in Manhattan, denied using the term.
The actor has previously mused about running for office. He’s also considered moving to Los Angeles.
“More"”
Two female officers asked Baldwin for ID, after which he “became belligerent,” CBS says. We can only imagine it went down something like this:
Cops: Sir, please pull over. You’re biking the wrong way down this street.
Baldwin: Of course I am. Jack Donaghy makes his own rules.
Cops: Sir, we need to see some identification.
Baldwin: Do you KNOW who I AM? And by the way, Lesbian Frankenstein wants her shoes back.
Cops: Excuse me? Really, sir, your ID, please.
Baldwin: You’re truly the Picasso of lameness. Save this for your iVillage blog.
Cops: We’re gonna need you to come with us.
Baldwin: Good God. I guess I can’t say no to two old spinsters. In the right light, you two might almost be sevens.
Despite his charm, the cops cuffed Baldwin and took the 56-year-old actor into the station, where he got a summons for riding the wrong direction and another for disorderly conduct. The erstwhile Jack Donaghy took to Twitter in protest (and later deleted the tweets)*
Yeah, a cycling infraction seems like it should rank pretty low on NYC cops’ radar, what with actual murderers and drug dealers and whatnot. Then again, Baldwin’s behavior was illegal and sounds semi-dangerous; anywhere with that much traffic doesn’t need any more help descending into chaos. Lemon out.
Correction: As of posting, the tweets are still up and the editor of this post has still never watched 30 Rock. She has been sentenced to a three-day marathon.
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