Arrested after giving the finger to NYC cops, Occupy Wall Street pair wins $52K payout
Arrested in 2013 after flipping off two New York City police officers on a Queens subway train, two Occupy Wall Street protesters are $52,000 closer to becoming one percenters.
That is the amount the city agreed to pay Nicholas Thommen, 21, and Channing Creage, 26, for violating their free-speech rights, according to the New York Daily News and the New York Post. The pair will split the settlement in the Brooklyn federal court civil rights case.
Police said the two also dropped the F-bomb and shouted that all police are “f—— rapists.” However, Thommen and Creage denied doing so and said they had simply gestured toward the officers with a middle finger raised.
They had been charged by police with disorderly conduct, but the Queens criminal case was dismissed when the two did not reoffend during a six-month period.
“Our clients are pleased with the city’s acknowledgement of their First Amendment right to express themselves even when those expressions may be considered offensive, controversial, or unpopular,” said attorneys Jason Leventhal and Edward Donlon, who represented the plaintiffs, in a written statement.
A city spokesman told the Daily News the settlement was in the Big Apple’s best interest.
Hat tip: Daily Mail
