COPS beat the crap out of Batman and Superman in NYC

[rcrush]

http://www.nypost.com/seven/07102009/news/regionalnews/biff__wham__pow__178573.htm

BIFF! WHAM! POW!

TIMES SQ. COPS VS. SUPER HEROES

By BETH STEBNER and JENNIFER FERMINO

Posted: 4:59 am
July 10, 2009

Superman and Batman took on New York's Finest last night in an epic Crossroads of the World battle that left the Man of Steel behind bars and the Caped Crusader in cuffs.

Stunned Times Square tourists and office workers watched agog as cops struggled to subdue Clark Kent's alter ego without kryptonite.

"The Man of Steel didn't go down with just two officers, it took seven officers!" witness Ryan McCormick said. "He was putting up a good fight. Little kids were like, 'Mommy, it's Superman!' "

If that weren't weird enough, McCormick turned and saw the Dark Knight handcuffed to a chair like a common villain.

"As this was happening, someone is like, 'It's Batman!' I turn around and there's Batman in handcuffs," he said.

Superman, a k a Maksim Katsnelson, 23, of The Bronx, was arrested and charged with assault and resisting arrested, police said, accusing him of punching a female officer in the face while she was trying to subdue him.

"He freaked out and punched the girl cop in the face," Batman said later.

Cops cuffed Batman, actually Frank Frisoli, but let him go because he didn't cause any problems, he told The Post.

The Maine resident, who has been visiting the city for two weeks, said the two had dressed up as the super heroes for laughs.

"We were just having a good time," Frisoli said.

Their comic-book adventure went awry when cops approached the dynamic duo on 43rd Street to see whether they had the required license to perform in costume in public, Frisoli said.

When they said no, cops asked for IDs. Again, they answered no, which prompted cops to handcuff Batman.

That's when Superman took off, screaming, "I'm not getting arrested."

But a crowd of police took him down and brought him to a special Fortress of Solitude -- the Midtown South station house.

Meanwhile, Batman left with another costumed character, said Melba Williams, a tourist from Tennessee.

"He walked off with the Statue of Liberty."

Additional reporting by Philip Messing

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[valerief]

1. So it's okay to panhandle if you're not in a costume? I don't understand the charge.

Of course, I'm amazed they didn't taze them. Probably because they weren't 14-year-old girls.

[rcrush]

3. "That's when Superman took off, screaming, "I'm not getting arrested.""

I think Superman has a record

[BlooInBloo]

4. Or pregnant women.

[imdjh]

2. Cops were the first in the wrong. Let Superman go. nt

[rgbecker]

5. Wait a minute, let's go back....You need a license to

walk around in a costume in public?

What about all those guys in suits on Wall st. ARREST THEM OFFICER!

I suppose this is some sort of anti terrorist law because of 9/11.

[armyowalgreens]

8. You need a license to be a street perfomer.

[Hugabear]

12. That law is such a crock of shit

First of all, who makes the determination as to what a costume is? Clearly these guys were in costume, but I'd like to see just how that law is worded. Even then, though, it should still be a matter of free speech. IMHO this is nothing more than a couple of cops just itching to wield their power.

[jberryhill]

16. Frequently, these types of statutes

...are to deter these costumes:




But I don't know about the NYC one.

[slampoet]

13. Looks like these guys weren't getting money. That's not street performing.

The law is VERY specific that it must be for money in almost every state.


Sound like a bunch of cops who don't read, and CERTAINLY aren't reasonable.

[valerief]

10. That's what I thought but then I read the article. They were panhandling. But I don't

know what the costume has to do with panhandling. Does panhandling in a costume make it performing?

[anigbrowl]

15. If you're panhandling, I think it's fair to say you're using the costume to get attention

I can't really blame the cops on this. The guy dressed as Batman was cooperative and polite and was released without charge. I am no fan of overzealous cops but running down the street yelling you don't plan to get arrested is the sort of thing any law enforcement officer would consider suspicious.

[RandomThoughts]

6. Just so people know. They weren't the real Superman or Batman.

:)

On a side note, a permit to where a costume?

[rcrush]

7. Now the NYPD can finally go after that damn Naked Cowboy

AND THEN! AQUAMAN!!!!!!!!

[SalmonChantedEvening]

9. Batman always gets the chicks. :)

[Jim Sagle]

11. That's not Batman, that's Urijah Faber!

I guess he needs a new gig since Mike Brown took his belt. ;)

[zbdent]

14. cops in New York got a whole lot tougher and became real Supermen (and women)

after 9/11 ...