A judge has ordered a pro-driver activist to stay away from city Transportation Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez after he interrupted a press conference last week in a tirade that ended in his arrest.
Raul Rivera, a taxi driver who runs a social media account called NYC Drivers Unite, was captured on video screaming at Rodriguez as he hailed a street safety project on Berry Street in Williamsburg. Rivera yelled the commissioner was “selling out the city,” and called him “a disgrace” as well as a “gentrifier.”
Prosecutors say Rivera crossed a line when he tore up a copy of the commissioner’s speech, ripped down signs promoting the project and ignored orders to back away. Rivera was outraged over the redesign of a stretch of Berry Street, where pedestrians are now encouraged to walk in the roadway during the day.
As the police attempted to arrest Rivera, he resisted by “flailing [his] arms,” which caused an officer to sprain her finger and break her nail, according to a criminal complaint.
Meanwhile, a crowd of supporters of the project sought to drown out Rivera’s complaints, chanting, “We love open streets!”
Rivera pleaded not guilty to assault, criminal mischief, resisting arrest, disorderly conduct, and harassment. A judge also imposed an order of protection requiring Rivera stay away from the transportation commissioner, according to the Brooklyn district attorney’s office.
An attorney representing Rivera declined to comment on the incident. He could not be reached.
Rivera is known among local transportation advocates for frequently disrupting their events. As a self-proclaimed “TLC driver advocate,” he regularly posts clips of himself yelling at City Council hearings and rallies for street safety projects. He calls climate change “a hoax” used by city officials to punish drivers. He’s launched a petition to reform the Taxi & Limousine Commission.
In a video posted on X in September, Rivera is captured pushing attendees at a City Hall…
Read the full article here
Leave a Reply