Judge Tosses Summons for former The Bear Writer who is captivated in the NYC train chair

NEW YORK (AP) – A New York judge has rejected a civil summons against Alex O’Keefe, a former author of FX’s hit program “The Bear” who was removed from a commuting train in the shackles last month. O’Keefe, who is black, accused transit officials of targeting his race after another passenger complained about how O’Keefe sat in a Metro North train. In a video filmed by O’Keefe who received widespread attention online, the TV screenwriter can be heard to ask officers: “You’re going to arrest the one black guy on the train, because this white woman said she didn’t like the way I was sitting on the train?” The train doesn’t seem to be full in the video. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority said police arrived after a conductor complained that O’Keefe had spread his legs over an adjoining seat on the train in violation of the rules of the railway line. He refused the officers of the officers to leave the train, the MTA said, and was placed in the shackles, interviewed on a platform and released with a summons for disorderly behavior. The summons was rejected by an administrative judge on Tuesday, a general result for such alleged offenses. In a video filmed outside the Rechts Building, O’Keefe accused the MTA of trying to make an example of me “I was harassed and kept sitting while he was black,” O’Keefe added in a statement. “Although this absurd case has been rejected today, I will continue to defend the civil rights of every New Yorker.” A spokesperson for the Transport Authority did not respond to a request for comment on the dismissal. Janno Lieber, chairman of the MTA, previously described the oppression as a simple case of a passenger who did not comply with the agency’s rules. “The police have to get involved because someone doesn’t take his feet off the seat?” Lieber said, adding, “Just take your feet off the seat. It’s so simple. And respect other passengers. But we’ll watch the video and handle all the dramas that come from these simple interactions these days.” O’Keefe, 31, won a 2023 Writers Guild Award with other writers, as “The Bear” was named the best comedy series.