'Central Park Karen' underwent 'psychoeducation about racial equality' after calling 911 on black man last year — so her case was just dismissed



The white woman notoriously dubbed "Central Park Karen" for calling 911 on a black man who asked her to leash her dog last year in Central Park underwent "psychoeducation about racial equality" — five therapy sessions "designed for introspection and progress" — and so her case was dropped Tuesday, the New York Post reported.

What are the details?

Amy Cooper, who told the police dispatcher she was being threatened, faced up to a year in prison on a charge of making a false report.

Image source: Twitter video screenshot via @melodyMcooper

But the paper said a judge granted Manhattan prosecutors' request to throw out the case after Cooper completed five therapy sessions "designed for introspection and progress," Assistant District Attorney Joan Illuzzi-Orbon said at a virtual hearing.

"They sent her to Critical Therapy Center … who provided psychoeducation and therapy services which focused on the ways in which Ms. Cooper could appreciate that racial identities shape our lives, but we cannot use them to harm ourselves or others," Illuzzi-Orbon told Manhattan Criminal Court Justice Anne Swern, according to the Post. "Psychoeducation about racial equality is woven into each therapy session to prompt understanding and reflection."

Illuzzi-Orbon also said the diversion program Cooper completed with Manhattan Justice Opportunities was a punishment "consistent" with other misdemeanor cases, the paper said.

"Ms. Cooper's therapist reported that it was a moving experience, and Ms. Cooper learned a lot in their sessions together," the prosecutor said during the hearing, according to the Post.

The paper said when Cooper was asked if she wanted to be heard, she told the judge, "No, your honor." Her lawyer also declined to speak but said he agreed with prosecutors, the Post added.

Swern then dismissed and sealed her case, the paper said.

What's the background?

Video of the May 2019 incident was posted to Twitter by the black man's sister. Cooper was heard saying, "I'm going to tell them there's an African American man threatening my life." Which is exactly what she said on the 911 call:

Oh, when Karens take a walk with their dogs off leash in the famous Bramble in NY’s Central Park, where it is clear… https://t.co/zFb3O0cClz
— Melody Cooper (@Melody Cooper)1590426192.0

Cooper later told CNN she regretted calling the police: "It was unacceptable, and words are just words, but I can't undo what I did. I sincerely and humbly apologize to everyone, especially to that man and his family."

She added, "I'm not a racist. I did not mean to harm that man in any way."

But shortly after the incident Cooper was fired from her job at Franklin Templeton Investments, which said, "We do not tolerate racism of any kind."

In addition, Christian Cooper — the black man in question in the cellphone video — told people to stop making death threats against Amy Cooper for her actions that he called "definitely racist."

Christian Cooper also refused to cooperate in the prosecution, saying "she's already paid a steep price" for her behavior, the Post reported.

NY Times circulates false claim about woman fired over viral Central Park racism video



Amy Cooper's world was turned upside down in May when she, a white woman, called the police on Christian Cooper, a black man, in Central Park. Amy Cooper was walking her dog without a leash in a section of the park that requires animals to be leashed. Amy Cooper told police that her life was being threatened, but video evidence proved that was not true.

The story was immediately thrust into the national spotlight as yet another instance of blatant racism. Amy Cooper was eventually fired from her job.

But she found herself back in the news last week following a new story from the New York Times.

What did the Times report?

The Times reported that Amy Cooper called police not just once, but twice, to claim that Christian Cooper was threatening her life.

In a story titled, "Amy Cooper Falsely Accused Black Bird-Watcher in 2nd 911 Conversation," the so-called "newspaper of record" reported:

Amy Cooper, the white woman who called the police on a Black bird-watcher in Central Park, had a second, previously unreported conversation with a 911 dispatcher in which she falsely claimed that the man tried to assault her, a prosecutor said on Wednesday.

"The defendant twice reported that an African-American man was putting her in danger, first by stating that he was threatening her and her dog, and then in a second call indicating that he tried to assault her in the Ramble area of the park," Joan Illuzzi, a senior prosecutor, said.
Breaking News: The white woman who called 911 on a Black bird-watcher in Central Park made a second call falsely cl… https://t.co/xoCyiXrtqO
— The New York Times (@The New York Times)1602685053.0

The story came the same day as the explosive story about Hunter Biden in the New York Post. And as was noted on social media, because of the Times' story, "Amy Cooper" trended on Twitter — not Hunter Biden.

But, as it turned out, the Times' story was incorrect.

What's the truth?

Although it was easily provable by watching the video of Amy Cooper that went viral, Cooper did not, as the Times' claimed, call police twice to report that Christian Cooper was threatening her life.

In fact, the second call between Amy Cooper and police was initiated by a 911 dispatcher.

An editor's note at the top of the Times' story now reads, "Editors' note: The New York Times and several other news organizations originally reported on Wednesday that Ms. Cooper made a second call to 911, citing courtroom statements. But on Friday, people familiar with the case clarified that the second call had actually been made by a 911 dispatcher who called Ms. Cooper back. This story has been updated to reflect that new information."

However, the Times did not update the headline of the story, nor did it delete social media posts that reported the false information, leading to new scorn against Cooper.