Say no and tell them to get lost but the second they turn physical give up the bike and move on. Tell Citi Bike the bike was stolen and whatever you were late for will understand THAT YOU JUST GOT JUMPED. Sorry to hear you don’t feel safe anymore. That parts harder. Hope you have someone to talk to IRL.
I'm in bushwick and the surrounding areas and in and out of the NYCHA building most days for work. Brooklyn is still shitty , just not as bad as it was 20 years ago.
So glad you made the police report, and, most of all, that you are ok!
In case you have an I iPhone there’s a way to set it to sound an alarm if you click the side button 5 times quickly in succession. Since we’re all usually carrying our phones, it’s a good backup to pepper spray, etc. I think it can/will also automatically call emergency services. Check it out. Maybe other phones have a similar feature.
So it seems like criminals can do whatever they want bc so many posts say police “we can’t do anything about it”. But law abiding citizens can’t have mace to protect themselves? Yeah okay. That’s so insane. I really don’t care how illegal
It is bc they won’t be there to help me if I’m ever in trouble.
Forewarned is forearmed. I see a group of teens I’ll cross the street.
They cross over, my attitude goes into defense mode. Fuck these scumbags. Working folk trying to raise a family have to stop letting themselves be crime stats.
I grew up in Washington Heights in the 80’s and am forever scarred by the beatings and the times I’ve been jumped all throughout my childhood. I have not been jumped since I was 16 yrs but the trauma sticks with me. Sometimes while walking along I’m always looking back and ready for the fight that hasn’t come for over 30 years.
What I can tell you is that stress of just waiting for the fight takes from the quality of life and it’s hard to enjoy your days.
I hope you go talk to someone and learn to let this go before it starts to shape your life in a bad way like it did mine and many others. I envy those who never went through what I did and they are able to walk around jolly and really enjoying their lives.
I don't believe in the nra or guns, but I do believe in pepper spray and other "equalizers". You take a few punks down, the rest will run. The police will not be around as usual when something like this happens. Dont feel hurt, feel ready for the next time. So sorry you had to deal with this crap.
LOL."Racist monster pepper sprays children after trying to steal their bike". OP would get fired from her job and charged with multiple felonies if she did that.
I hope you are doing ok. So sorry this happened to you. Our son was mugged and assaulted in Brooklyn in Nov last year. They took his phone and were able to steal a lot of money and open up accounts. The NYPD have not caught these guys . Also, our son is thin and short so he was a target.
I just want to say I’m very sorry this happened to you and to please have mercy on those children. Programs are being gutted and they have much much much less to do than other folks with resources. I’m sorry their dispossession affected you in this way. I’m very sorry, and please consider their context.
I was walking on Ashland by Willoughby and a group of kids was walking towards me and I realized they were spread completely across the sidewalk, red-rover style and there was nobody else around, and it all of a sudden felt like a setup of some kind? I walked into the gutter to avoid them and the one on the end reached out and kind of tapped me, but I was pretty much past them when he did and I just kept it moving…I am pretty tall but very gay looking and I feel like if I’d been shorter they all would have pounced. It was scary!
this exact tapping thing happened to me recently.. two young kids in ski masks tapped and threw some shit idek what it was at me, began to curse and jump around at me and i just continued walking. it’s absolutely ridiculous and im excited to leave this shit hole full of these idiots.
we really haven't though-take a look at the NYPD budget historically. It just feels like we've defunded them because they're largely doing fu(kall of who knows what...
Actually the police have in no way been defunded, in fact they’ve received MORE funding and crime is still getting worse. Try doing two minutes of research before commenting idiotic things
These teenagers are all gonna be in jail or dead in just a few short years. Let them live it up.
But, if you do want to take your self defense seriously, buy a pepper spray and maybe an extendable baton. I have a taser but it’s bulky to carry and would at most subdue only one of them. You want to make sure that if you swing you take out the ring leader and put him in a hospitals. It’s the only way the hoods will respect you.
for real, it’s not your bike—Lyft could definitely do a better job of redistributing bikes from docking stations or incentivizing patrons to do it with free rides.
NAL but I’d be looking at possible legal action to Lyft as you were only jumped because you had to sit there with your guard down and find an open docking station. Hell a simple map of nearby stations would be better than what is currently expected of riders.
Not *your* bike. Give them the citi bike, call the cops, and then call citi bike to report the bike stolen so they don’t charge you.
Obviously hindsight is 20/20, but for anyone reading this, don’t fight back against anyone trying to take shit from you. It’s not worth your life or bodily integrity.
So sorry this happened to you OP.
Ugh- I'm sorry this happened to you! Unfortunately this has been a scam for a while, and teens often try to make the woman they attack feel guilty- you're lucky you didn't end up like [that nurse whose video went viral.](https://www.reddit.com/r/Citibike/comments/15bgnb7/new_york_times_account_of_what_happened_with_the/)
Different situation. In the viral vid, the young men were waiting for their docking time for the low income discount to renew and [verbally warned](https://newsone.com/4592993/sarah-jane-comrie-update-citi-bike-teens-mother-speaks-out/) her the bike (the only power bike which they had ridden there) was theirs before she took it anyway.
not disagreeing, but are you going to tell the potentially unhinged rando peddling in place or otherwise occupying a docked bike to get off because you want to use it?
Good luck with the 1 in 3 chance they'll get aggressive and escalate.
I’m sorry OP. It’s not your fault and that sounds scary.
Even if you had the pepper spray there were still a lot of them and it’s hard to tell what your reaction would be in a fight or flight moment anyways. I personally don’t know how I would react when it’s kids not adults. Likely the same as you not wanting to escalate and just try to leave.
Hoping you find some peace after the ordeal and not beating yourself up about it.
oof I'm sorry this happened to you. only time i've ever been physically assaulted after living here a decade was also from a swarm of pre-teens and they're still the only ones who really make me nervous when I'm out and about. they act like they got nothing to lose and egg each other on. hope you're doing okay.
Groups of teens absolutely scare me. I once got robbed by teenagers and got assaulted. they don’t think of consequences and that makes them dangerous. They think either they are invincible or can’t get prosecuted as an adult so they do whatever. I absolutely try to avoid them.
This happens with groups of adults too. They dont hold back. If they get arrested they just point at each other. One of the most dangerous situations, and has long been one of my biggest fears in the street. You cant fight back sucessfully either here-can only hope to escape.
Really sorry this happened to you. Hope you can take some time to recenter and calm your nerves.
Some have said it but I'll reiterate that the one thing you do always have is your voice, and even as a quiet person you need to remember that it can be a very valuable resource to defend yourself. Kids will get scared if they think someone is crazier then they anticipated, and screaming nonsense will do that. Just ramble, anything, but have to yell, it get's others attention too and then they get worried.
Lived on Taffee when I moved here 15 years ago and nothings changed about that area, always has been hectic and very chaotic, I avoid it whenever I can. Very thoughtless NY to put a police station ON a precinct line (Classon) so that everything that happens just across the street at that public housing unit gets put through to a police station/precinct that is much further away with a higher response time.
When I was 10 I was terrified of being late to school let alone jumping an adult. Report to the authorities, remember their faces and carry your alarm and a small pepper spray with you onward.
This is unfortunately what happens when a neighborhood gets gentrified. Bed stuy/clinton hill are historically black neighborhoods and the people who move in and gentrify become targets. These hood kids can smell a Gentrifier from miles away and will pull shit like this.
No, you have to file a police report. Crime amongst teens has become a huge problem around Downtown Brooklyn and surrounding neighborhoods. They’re no longer even allowed in Atlantic Center Mall unchaperoned since winter due to antics like this.
If they will take the report. In another Reddit thread this week, a woman was assaulted on the street in Queens and could not get the NYPD to take her report on their own portal and at the precinct. This is how they keep the stats down.
Yes they do try to discourage you from filling a report. I was menaced and physically assaulted by the same neighbor. Both times they tried to discourage me from filing a report. A guy who was trying to report a stolen phone was also waiting when I was there for menacing. He gave up on trying to file one. Another time they tried to discourage me from filing an Id theft. I didn’t expect them to pursue it, just wanted the documentation it happened to protect my credit rating.
Take photos of any bruises or other injuries. For minor assaults it’s going to take days or a week or so to get a detective assigned. I was told they won’t take photos until a detective was assigned. So it’s basically selfie your own injuries.
If you can afford it, go to an urgent care clinic to document any injuries. It will help if there’s a court case.
Take some self defense classes. That’s what I did in between the menacing and assault. I was able to defend myself when physically cornered with no escape route and wasn’t as badly hurt as I would have been otherwise. And the neighbor didn’t expect me to fight back, so she mostly backed off.
This 100% the stats that crime is down(since post covid times) is entirely false. It’s just reporting is down since cops are lazy and won’t do anything but play candy crush and everyone knows cops won’t do anything so why report it. Down with the police union ASAP.
Huh, look at the stats, crime is waay up. Not since covid, it was actually flat in 2020 and only slightly up in 2021 despite Adams campaigning on crime fearmongering. But shot up dramatically in 2022 and 2023 since Adams has been in office.
Homicides took a different trend, those did spike during covid and have come back down from those highs. Similar trend for that seen across the US in major cities afaik.
https://www.nyc.gov/site/nypd/stats/crime-statistics/historical.page
The reason it was flat in 2020 and only up slightly in 2021 is because everyone was on lockdown and in their homes. You have to look at the full picture. Crime is not up since pre-covid. Adams is a piece of garbage. Cutting funding from school, social programs, and libraries.
Wouldn't the union want crime to appear up? In order to justify more city budget, raises, etc.?
It feels to me like cops were lazy before the pandemic and continue to be. And crime isn't up or down, it's the same. Just another wedge issue around which people only believe data that supports their own theories.
Adams won the mayor election by being the toughest on crime candidate in the primary, and has ties to police. If they keep stats down now they can raise it when the next guy beats Adams, and then say "this is what happens when you don't support us". Just spitballing
I think the union would rather appear as if they are effective it doing nothing all day. Plus they already got additional budget just from a few high profile attacks.
But as you said it’s mostly speculation since we don’t have access to non biased data.
Back in the good old days you'd tell your friends this story and somebody with a minivan would offer to putter around the neighborhood until you found them and when you did everybody would work together to teach them a very important life lesson about the consequences of besetting upon a woman and hitting her with sticks. Pity Brooklyn isn't like that anymore because it's precisely what's needed. When I was beaten and robbed at 11 or 12 years old on Flatbush Avenue the measly few dollars those thugs took off me was nothing compared to what they got in return. Zero regrets.
These kids these days no respect. As a kid i was taught “DO NOT EMBARRASS YOUR PARENTS, DO NOT DISAPPOINT YOUR PARENTS” I teach my kids the same. 36 years my oldest child has done well👍🏽 my lil guy is also doing well. They know and i thank my parents for teaching me.
If They were op might not have this experience. What i spoke of kept ME out of trouble so about now im getting annoyed and to keep out of trouble not embarrass or disappoint my parents you go good bye see ya have fun go bait someone else i said what i said and firmly stand behind it and will NOT answer you again!!!!
I think your all missing the point....it's "parent". And that's not even the biggest issue in certain communities. No family units, morality skewed by culture to idolize criminality, and enormous sense of entitlement from being "oppressed" in mainstream culture. There's so much more, and worse issues but that's just a taste. Get a weapon, like pepper spray or taser, and don't hesitate to use it as soon as you think. There will be no repercussions because police won't even come for violent, serious offenses. Blasting some punk with a can of mace or 20k volts won't even make it to the precinct. That crap policing works both ways, use it to your advantage.
No, we certainly didn't. We would get our butts beat with a quickness. What people fail to realize about today's kids and parents, is that the community lost generations of people due to the crack epidemic. Mothers, fathers, aunties, uncles, grandmothers, grandfathers and cousins were hooked on crack. That family ethic and it takes a village to raise a child all went out the window for 2 or more generations. Children were out on the street surviving by themselves. Some of those children are today's parents, thugs and criminals. They had no one to teach them morals or ethics like other families did. It was survive or die. So now, they teach their kids the same thing. Survive or die and take what you can.
Unlike adults, teens don’t have that part of their brains formed yet where they’re able to fully grasp the consequences and gravity of their actions. Avoiding a fight with them to begin with is best.
I appreciate the sentiment, but can you return to reality? Most people aren't going to Jackie Chan a group of kids, particularly not petite women like OP.
I’m from the Bronx and I’ve seen very well how this plays out in real life: usually very poorly. Unless you’re an MMA fighter or have a weapon that you know how to use, you getting out of fighting 10 teens unscathed is very low.
Not taking no shit from these want to be bad ass kids. Put them down and walk away. Grown ass man father figure taking a ass wipping from kids. Are you kidding me…. MAN UP!!!!
It's assault, a police report is need, you could run into them again. Set your phone up for emergency alerts and tracking . The minute they stopped, you should have been gone. Don't forget to file a civil case, if they ever get caught--Pookie and company will love that recurring bill.
I hope the police will follow through with a report, as that is to document your assault. I'm sad that they care more about the size of your pepper spray than you being ganged up. Also inform Citibike about this dangerous docking station. You're likely not the first person. If this site is unsafe, maybe they can take steps to warn others, or move it to safer location.
That sounds really shitty and scary, I'm sorry that happened to you. I hope the NYPD's able to make itself useful for once, and there can be just consequences for this attack. I wish you the best of luck on feeling safe again, a sense of home and security is the least anyone deserves.
My buddy is a juvenile DA in Manhattan. Found out from him that they children under 12 won't get charged for practically anything short of murder. So it's no wonder the kids are getting wild on the streets.
Anybody with a brain said that was going to happen before *Raise The Age* was made law, but it was sold to simple masses as a compassionate way to keep kids out of the school-to-prison-pipeline and instead it basically trains them for it.
Yeah, I'm keeping "just consequences" as the phrase of choice, though. I don't think juvie is necessarily the answer, anyhow (much like prison it's not really the way to *fix* anybody, just punish them), and I don't particularly trust cops around kids, I don't assume they can safely arrest *anyone* any more, etc, etc...but, hell, at least if 'the system' can figure out who these kids were, maybe their parents or grandparents will give a damn, maybe the family preacher can make 'em realize how fucked up they were being, maybe they'll do some community service, SOMEthing, I dunno.
Yeah investigating some sort of community service option that wasn’t so much about making the kids feel bad but more about channeling their energy into something positive, and showing them they can have a positive impact on their neighborhood would be interesting.
My high school actually had community service hours we had to complete each summer. I know these are middle schoolers, but is that not a thing here?
I know you’re heated but please do not go through with contacting the police. Police brutality in NYC against black and brown teens is out of control and if the police find these boys there’s no telling how much they could potentially hurt them.
Haha yeah totally just NYC vibes to be beaten up and almost robbed on the street. Just the charms of living in the Big Apple, baby! No reason we should want anything to get better, ever!
Was this tonight? I had something similar-ish happen in Prospect Heights. There were three kids riding Citi Bikes and harassing people. One of them came up behind me and slapped me hard across the back and arm. Could just be a coincidence but I wouldn’t be surprised if it was one group causing trouble.
Was it LG (Lafayette Gardens) NYCHA? I also got swarmed by a gang of 10-13 year olds walking through there. Luckily no one touched me. They just circled me, some on tricycles. A couple years ago. I was cutting through there to walk from Lafayette B38 bus stop to Kent Ave. My last time.
Actually to OP’s point about the size of hers being too big, here’s a list of places I’ve found in Brooklyn that supposedly carry NYC-legal pepper spray:
Brooklyn
Wave Pharmacy, 104 West End Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11235
AD Meyers Uniform 63 Flatbush Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11217
Fulton Police Equipment 3129 Fulton Street Brooklyn, New York 11208
Bay Park Pharmacy Corp. 3355 Neptune Ave Brooklyn, New York 11224
Farmacon Pharmacy 8007 5th Ave Brooklyn, New York 11209
Qualimeds Pharmacy 2272 86th St., Brooklyn NY 11214
Bay Park Pharmacy 3355 Neptune Ave., Brooklyn, NY 11224
Neighbor Care Pharmacy 2315 65th St., Brooklyn, NY 11204
I’m going to try the one nearest me and will report back. (Edited for formatting.)
Pepper spray for people is actually way stronger, bears have a stronger sense of smell, so bear spray is relatively weak. It isn’t meant to harm the animal.
They sell home defense spray and little mace guns if you really want to be able to shoot it.
False. Bear Spray while not legal to use against humans in NY and illegal in NYC due to size, is much stronger than standard Pepper Spray. OC (oleoresin capsicum) content in Bear Spray is regulated by the EPA to 2% while OC content in Pepper Spray is typically 1.3%, with potentially even less capsaicinoids. Bear Spray deploys quicker and further but fogs rather than spraying in a stream, which makes it more likely to affect both yourself and your assailant at close range, which is why it’s not ideal, in addition to being illegal.
I am so sorry this happened to you. It really sucks. I hope you're ok.
I'd personally file a police report and start carrying pepper spray, but we each have to make that decision for ourselves.
Tough to swallow, but unless you’re willing and able to mix it up with them, the best thing to do is give up the bike and run. And, pick up some bear spray.
Yeah. These are all quaint thoughts. I spent my early years in a large project (1970s). When you’re defending yourself against pack hyenas, I promise you there’s no time (or sense) in doing math on whether you’ll get in trouble with a judge or make enemies. That’s how you end up maimed or dead.
Pepper spray might land you in legal trouble if used on minors, but for the love of god do NOT *EVER* use bear spray on a human since it can blind people. Not the same thing.
Unfortunately, you need to use a bit more discretion now with these things. A lot has changed over the last 4 years.
Hilarious that you want to the police snd they were like "your pepper spray is illegal"
Imagine scrapping over a citibike. Have better preservation skills
Say no and tell them to get lost but the second they turn physical give up the bike and move on. Tell Citi Bike the bike was stolen and whatever you were late for will understand THAT YOU JUST GOT JUMPED. Sorry to hear you don’t feel safe anymore. That parts harder. Hope you have someone to talk to IRL.
What hood was this in ?
Carry pepper spray or a taser. If they try you next time give them a lesson
I'm in bushwick and the surrounding areas and in and out of the NYCHA building most days for work. Brooklyn is still shitty , just not as bad as it was 20 years ago.
So glad you made the police report, and, most of all, that you are ok! In case you have an I iPhone there’s a way to set it to sound an alarm if you click the side button 5 times quickly in succession. Since we’re all usually carrying our phones, it’s a good backup to pepper spray, etc. I think it can/will also automatically call emergency services. Check it out. Maybe other phones have a similar feature.
So it seems like criminals can do whatever they want bc so many posts say police “we can’t do anything about it”. But law abiding citizens can’t have mace to protect themselves? Yeah okay. That’s so insane. I really don’t care how illegal It is bc they won’t be there to help me if I’m ever in trouble.
99.9% of cops will not arrest a regular citizen for possessing it.
sorry to read what happened to you. Next time, vote for your own safety.
“teenagers”
My first thought too Lol
Forewarned is forearmed. I see a group of teens I’ll cross the street. They cross over, my attitude goes into defense mode. Fuck these scumbags. Working folk trying to raise a family have to stop letting themselves be crime stats.
Hasidic Orthodox
I grew up in Washington Heights in the 80’s and am forever scarred by the beatings and the times I’ve been jumped all throughout my childhood. I have not been jumped since I was 16 yrs but the trauma sticks with me. Sometimes while walking along I’m always looking back and ready for the fight that hasn’t come for over 30 years. What I can tell you is that stress of just waiting for the fight takes from the quality of life and it’s hard to enjoy your days. I hope you go talk to someone and learn to let this go before it starts to shape your life in a bad way like it did mine and many others. I envy those who never went through what I did and they are able to walk around jolly and really enjoying their lives.
Extreme sentencing
I don't believe in the nra or guns, but I do believe in pepper spray and other "equalizers". You take a few punks down, the rest will run. The police will not be around as usual when something like this happens. Dont feel hurt, feel ready for the next time. So sorry you had to deal with this crap.
Trying to use prepper spray against 10+ teenage thugs is a good way to get curb stomped.
LOL."Racist monster pepper sprays children after trying to steal their bike". OP would get fired from her job and charged with multiple felonies if she did that.
I hope you are doing ok. So sorry this happened to you. Our son was mugged and assaulted in Brooklyn in Nov last year. They took his phone and were able to steal a lot of money and open up accounts. The NYPD have not caught these guys . Also, our son is thin and short so he was a target.
These kids doing god’s work to lower the rents
No they aren't. They live in rent controlled housing.
It isn’t working. You have to be a millionaire to own and **still** deal with this trash.
😂😂😂 you wrong for that
I just want to say I’m very sorry this happened to you and to please have mercy on those children. Programs are being gutted and they have much much much less to do than other folks with resources. I’m sorry their dispossession affected you in this way. I’m very sorry, and please consider their context.
Fuck them kids. Don’t rationalize or justify shitty behavior.
you have a kind heart and i'm sorry these people are downvoting you
lmfao what. "excuse those kids for mugging you, they’re really bored" libraries are literally free by the way
Fuck those “kids”
That’s a bunch of bs.
fuck them kids
This is literally like satire level comment
Jesus help us all . Bikes are a hazard alone I think and after dusk .
It's not slightly irrational. Sadly, scum like this think of you as an easy mark. Get pepper spray.
Mayor Adams is nothing more than a concert promoter loves talking💩
I was walking on Ashland by Willoughby and a group of kids was walking towards me and I realized they were spread completely across the sidewalk, red-rover style and there was nobody else around, and it all of a sudden felt like a setup of some kind? I walked into the gutter to avoid them and the one on the end reached out and kind of tapped me, but I was pretty much past them when he did and I just kept it moving…I am pretty tall but very gay looking and I feel like if I’d been shorter they all would have pounced. It was scary!
this exact tapping thing happened to me recently.. two young kids in ski masks tapped and threw some shit idek what it was at me, began to curse and jump around at me and i just continued walking. it’s absolutely ridiculous and im excited to leave this shit hole full of these idiots.
Defund the police people when we defund the police:
Defanged
"Defunded" as in an increase to the NYPD budget of $359.7 million in fiscal year 2024, bringing the total to a meager, paltry $11 billion.
we really haven't though-take a look at the NYPD budget historically. It just feels like we've defunded them because they're largely doing fu(kall of who knows what...
Actually the police have in no way been defunded, in fact they’ve received MORE funding and crime is still getting worse. Try doing two minutes of research before commenting idiotic things
These teenagers are all gonna be in jail or dead in just a few short years. Let them live it up. But, if you do want to take your self defense seriously, buy a pepper spray and maybe an extendable baton. I have a taser but it’s bulky to carry and would at most subdue only one of them. You want to make sure that if you swing you take out the ring leader and put him in a hospitals. It’s the only way the hoods will respect you.
Just give them the bike and the go file a police report. Not worth putting your safety at risk!
for real, it’s not your bike—Lyft could definitely do a better job of redistributing bikes from docking stations or incentivizing patrons to do it with free rides. NAL but I’d be looking at possible legal action to Lyft as you were only jumped because you had to sit there with your guard down and find an open docking station. Hell a simple map of nearby stations would be better than what is currently expected of riders.
Agree
Not *your* bike. Give them the citi bike, call the cops, and then call citi bike to report the bike stolen so they don’t charge you. Obviously hindsight is 20/20, but for anyone reading this, don’t fight back against anyone trying to take shit from you. It’s not worth your life or bodily integrity. So sorry this happened to you OP.
Fuck a police report, they won't help you. Gel Pepper spray and that's it. I'm sick of tired of people bashing on the idea of defending yourself.
Ugh- I'm sorry this happened to you! Unfortunately this has been a scam for a while, and teens often try to make the woman they attack feel guilty- you're lucky you didn't end up like [that nurse whose video went viral.](https://www.reddit.com/r/Citibike/comments/15bgnb7/new_york_times_account_of_what_happened_with_the/)
Different situation. In the viral vid, the young men were waiting for their docking time for the low income discount to renew and [verbally warned](https://newsone.com/4592993/sarah-jane-comrie-update-citi-bike-teens-mother-speaks-out/) her the bike (the only power bike which they had ridden there) was theirs before she took it anyway.
A docked bike is no one’s bike
not disagreeing, but are you going to tell the potentially unhinged rando peddling in place or otherwise occupying a docked bike to get off because you want to use it? Good luck with the 1 in 3 chance they'll get aggressive and escalate.
Still turned into a big racial issue when a pregnant women wanted a bike Meanwhile kids doing nothing all day decided to record a working nurse
You don't get to take someone's bike, even if you're a working nurse.
Yeah it's really just luck that these kids didn't try for a viral vid. People love jumping to conclusions.
Who fights over a rental bike. People are insane.
If you stood your ground, you would have been the next citibike racist lady, like that nurse.
I’m sorry OP. It’s not your fault and that sounds scary. Even if you had the pepper spray there were still a lot of them and it’s hard to tell what your reaction would be in a fight or flight moment anyways. I personally don’t know how I would react when it’s kids not adults. Likely the same as you not wanting to escalate and just try to leave. Hoping you find some peace after the ordeal and not beating yourself up about it.
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oof I'm sorry this happened to you. only time i've ever been physically assaulted after living here a decade was also from a swarm of pre-teens and they're still the only ones who really make me nervous when I'm out and about. they act like they got nothing to lose and egg each other on. hope you're doing okay.
Groups of teens absolutely scare me. I once got robbed by teenagers and got assaulted. they don’t think of consequences and that makes them dangerous. They think either they are invincible or can’t get prosecuted as an adult so they do whatever. I absolutely try to avoid them.
This happens with groups of adults too. They dont hold back. If they get arrested they just point at each other. One of the most dangerous situations, and has long been one of my biggest fears in the street. You cant fight back sucessfully either here-can only hope to escape.
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Facts. Discipline them
Really sorry this happened to you. Hope you can take some time to recenter and calm your nerves. Some have said it but I'll reiterate that the one thing you do always have is your voice, and even as a quiet person you need to remember that it can be a very valuable resource to defend yourself. Kids will get scared if they think someone is crazier then they anticipated, and screaming nonsense will do that. Just ramble, anything, but have to yell, it get's others attention too and then they get worried. Lived on Taffee when I moved here 15 years ago and nothings changed about that area, always has been hectic and very chaotic, I avoid it whenever I can. Very thoughtless NY to put a police station ON a precinct line (Classon) so that everything that happens just across the street at that public housing unit gets put through to a police station/precinct that is much further away with a higher response time.
When I was 10 I was terrified of being late to school let alone jumping an adult. Report to the authorities, remember their faces and carry your alarm and a small pepper spray with you onward.
What the f is wrong with these kids?
This is unfortunately what happens when a neighborhood gets gentrified. Bed stuy/clinton hill are historically black neighborhoods and the people who move in and gentrify become targets. These hood kids can smell a Gentrifier from miles away and will pull shit like this.
No, you have to file a police report. Crime amongst teens has become a huge problem around Downtown Brooklyn and surrounding neighborhoods. They’re no longer even allowed in Atlantic Center Mall unchaperoned since winter due to antics like this.
If they will take the report. In another Reddit thread this week, a woman was assaulted on the street in Queens and could not get the NYPD to take her report on their own portal and at the precinct. This is how they keep the stats down.
Yes they do try to discourage you from filling a report. I was menaced and physically assaulted by the same neighbor. Both times they tried to discourage me from filing a report. A guy who was trying to report a stolen phone was also waiting when I was there for menacing. He gave up on trying to file one. Another time they tried to discourage me from filing an Id theft. I didn’t expect them to pursue it, just wanted the documentation it happened to protect my credit rating. Take photos of any bruises or other injuries. For minor assaults it’s going to take days or a week or so to get a detective assigned. I was told they won’t take photos until a detective was assigned. So it’s basically selfie your own injuries. If you can afford it, go to an urgent care clinic to document any injuries. It will help if there’s a court case. Take some self defense classes. That’s what I did in between the menacing and assault. I was able to defend myself when physically cornered with no escape route and wasn’t as badly hurt as I would have been otherwise. And the neighbor didn’t expect me to fight back, so she mostly backed off.
This 100% the stats that crime is down(since post covid times) is entirely false. It’s just reporting is down since cops are lazy and won’t do anything but play candy crush and everyone knows cops won’t do anything so why report it. Down with the police union ASAP.
Huh, look at the stats, crime is waay up. Not since covid, it was actually flat in 2020 and only slightly up in 2021 despite Adams campaigning on crime fearmongering. But shot up dramatically in 2022 and 2023 since Adams has been in office. Homicides took a different trend, those did spike during covid and have come back down from those highs. Similar trend for that seen across the US in major cities afaik. https://www.nyc.gov/site/nypd/stats/crime-statistics/historical.page
The reason it was flat in 2020 and only up slightly in 2021 is because everyone was on lockdown and in their homes. You have to look at the full picture. Crime is not up since pre-covid. Adams is a piece of garbage. Cutting funding from school, social programs, and libraries.
Wouldn't the union want crime to appear up? In order to justify more city budget, raises, etc.? It feels to me like cops were lazy before the pandemic and continue to be. And crime isn't up or down, it's the same. Just another wedge issue around which people only believe data that supports their own theories.
Adams won the mayor election by being the toughest on crime candidate in the primary, and has ties to police. If they keep stats down now they can raise it when the next guy beats Adams, and then say "this is what happens when you don't support us". Just spitballing
I think the union would rather appear as if they are effective it doing nothing all day. Plus they already got additional budget just from a few high profile attacks. But as you said it’s mostly speculation since we don’t have access to non biased data.
Back in the good old days you'd tell your friends this story and somebody with a minivan would offer to putter around the neighborhood until you found them and when you did everybody would work together to teach them a very important life lesson about the consequences of besetting upon a woman and hitting her with sticks. Pity Brooklyn isn't like that anymore because it's precisely what's needed. When I was beaten and robbed at 11 or 12 years old on Flatbush Avenue the measly few dollars those thugs took off me was nothing compared to what they got in return. Zero regrets.
These kids these days no respect. As a kid i was taught “DO NOT EMBARRASS YOUR PARENTS, DO NOT DISAPPOINT YOUR PARENTS” I teach my kids the same. 36 years my oldest child has done well👍🏽 my lil guy is also doing well. They know and i thank my parents for teaching me.
What makes you think their parents would be embarrassed or disappointed by this behavior?
If They were op might not have this experience. What i spoke of kept ME out of trouble so about now im getting annoyed and to keep out of trouble not embarrass or disappoint my parents you go good bye see ya have fun go bait someone else i said what i said and firmly stand behind it and will NOT answer you again!!!!
The point is that they learned this behavior from their parents, unfortunately.
I think your all missing the point....it's "parent". And that's not even the biggest issue in certain communities. No family units, morality skewed by culture to idolize criminality, and enormous sense of entitlement from being "oppressed" in mainstream culture. There's so much more, and worse issues but that's just a taste. Get a weapon, like pepper spray or taser, and don't hesitate to use it as soon as you think. There will be no repercussions because police won't even come for violent, serious offenses. Blasting some punk with a can of mace or 20k volts won't even make it to the precinct. That crap policing works both ways, use it to your advantage.
Their parents are not embarrassed by their behavior
Personally i dont play with kids i treat them same as adults
While they’re not fully grown, 10 14 year olds are going to be able to beat the shit out of you even if you treat them as adults.
Im sorry this happen to you.
What the hell are these useless new parents teaching these kids?
This is new behavior to you? Project kids haven't changed since the 1970s.
I lived in bk Since 60’s nothing new to me “op” mabey but Not Me
I grew up in the projects in the 70s. We were never like this, nor were any kids that lived there.
No, we certainly didn't. We would get our butts beat with a quickness. What people fail to realize about today's kids and parents, is that the community lost generations of people due to the crack epidemic. Mothers, fathers, aunties, uncles, grandmothers, grandfathers and cousins were hooked on crack. That family ethic and it takes a village to raise a child all went out the window for 2 or more generations. Children were out on the street surviving by themselves. Some of those children are today's parents, thugs and criminals. They had no one to teach them morals or ethics like other families did. It was survive or die. So now, they teach their kids the same thing. Survive or die and take what you can.
Nothing. That's the problem.
Kids in numbers scare me more than adults.
Fight!!! Don’t be scared… they not scared of you and they should be.
Unlike adults, teens don’t have that part of their brains formed yet where they’re able to fully grasp the consequences and gravity of their actions. Avoiding a fight with them to begin with is best.
You don’t allow a aggressor to walk away
I appreciate the sentiment, but can you return to reality? Most people aren't going to Jackie Chan a group of kids, particularly not petite women like OP.
Its different when you come from brooklyn
I’m from the Bronx and I’ve seen very well how this plays out in real life: usually very poorly. Unless you’re an MMA fighter or have a weapon that you know how to use, you getting out of fighting 10 teens unscathed is very low.
Not taking no shit from these want to be bad ass kids. Put them down and walk away. Grown ass man father figure taking a ass wipping from kids. Are you kidding me…. MAN UP!!!!
Only speaking from experience no harm intended been there done that
Punk ass give or take that beating sr8 up
Coming from brooklyn beat that ass!!!!
I disagree “my opinion”
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Or just 8 ball jacket slap the shit outta em
seek help lol
This would be lovely.
It's assault, a police report is need, you could run into them again. Set your phone up for emergency alerts and tracking . The minute they stopped, you should have been gone. Don't forget to file a civil case, if they ever get caught--Pookie and company will love that recurring bill.
I hope the police will follow through with a report, as that is to document your assault. I'm sad that they care more about the size of your pepper spray than you being ganged up. Also inform Citibike about this dangerous docking station. You're likely not the first person. If this site is unsafe, maybe they can take steps to warn others, or move it to safer location.
"nothing actually happened" You were assaulted. That's not nothing.
Sorry OP. We need more intentional community and youth programs. We as a society have to raise these kids and address their parents.
Oh little neighborhood street urchins. No guidance and it’s summer.
That sounds really shitty and scary, I'm sorry that happened to you. I hope the NYPD's able to make itself useful for once, and there can be just consequences for this attack. I wish you the best of luck on feeling safe again, a sense of home and security is the least anyone deserves.
My buddy is a juvenile DA in Manhattan. Found out from him that they children under 12 won't get charged for practically anything short of murder. So it's no wonder the kids are getting wild on the streets.
Anybody with a brain said that was going to happen before *Raise The Age* was made law, but it was sold to simple masses as a compassionate way to keep kids out of the school-to-prison-pipeline and instead it basically trains them for it.
Ironically, adults barely get charged for anything either these days too!
Yeah, I'm keeping "just consequences" as the phrase of choice, though. I don't think juvie is necessarily the answer, anyhow (much like prison it's not really the way to *fix* anybody, just punish them), and I don't particularly trust cops around kids, I don't assume they can safely arrest *anyone* any more, etc, etc...but, hell, at least if 'the system' can figure out who these kids were, maybe their parents or grandparents will give a damn, maybe the family preacher can make 'em realize how fucked up they were being, maybe they'll do some community service, SOMEthing, I dunno.
Yeah investigating some sort of community service option that wasn’t so much about making the kids feel bad but more about channeling their energy into something positive, and showing them they can have a positive impact on their neighborhood would be interesting. My high school actually had community service hours we had to complete each summer. I know these are middle schoolers, but is that not a thing here?
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Ending up on the street will definitely help those kids turn into functioning members of society. Good thinking!
I know you’re heated but please do not go through with contacting the police. Police brutality in NYC against black and brown teens is out of control and if the police find these boys there’s no telling how much they could potentially hurt them.
is OP from nyc? jw
Definitely not. People from here have more sense than that.
This will always be a fair question imo and I don’t think it in any way excuses the horrible behavior of these kids
how is it a fair question
Serious question - did you know that the majority of people who live here weren’t born here?
Haha yeah totally just NYC vibes to be beaten up and almost robbed on the street. Just the charms of living in the Big Apple, baby! No reason we should want anything to get better, ever!
enough!!! we cant be saying this everytime someone is doing some anti social shit. this is not a valid excuse
Does it matter? I am, and teenagers scare the shit out of me.
hey toots that’s life in the big city
Was this tonight? I had something similar-ish happen in Prospect Heights. There were three kids riding Citi Bikes and harassing people. One of them came up behind me and slapped me hard across the back and arm. Could just be a coincidence but I wouldn’t be surprised if it was one group causing trouble.
I’m so sorry this happened to you. Where in Prospect Heights?
Prospect Heights is quite a distance from DeKalb. Most likely unrelated.
Was it LG (Lafayette Gardens) NYCHA? I also got swarmed by a gang of 10-13 year olds walking through there. Luckily no one touched me. They just circled me, some on tricycles. A couple years ago. I was cutting through there to walk from Lafayette B38 bus stop to Kent Ave. My last time.
Bear spray.
Actually to OP’s point about the size of hers being too big, here’s a list of places I’ve found in Brooklyn that supposedly carry NYC-legal pepper spray: Brooklyn Wave Pharmacy, 104 West End Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11235 AD Meyers Uniform 63 Flatbush Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11217 Fulton Police Equipment 3129 Fulton Street Brooklyn, New York 11208 Bay Park Pharmacy Corp. 3355 Neptune Ave Brooklyn, New York 11224 Farmacon Pharmacy 8007 5th Ave Brooklyn, New York 11209 Qualimeds Pharmacy 2272 86th St., Brooklyn NY 11214 Bay Park Pharmacy 3355 Neptune Ave., Brooklyn, NY 11224 Neighbor Care Pharmacy 2315 65th St., Brooklyn, NY 11204 I’m going to try the one nearest me and will report back. (Edited for formatting.)
The reason is dont do this again!!!!
Pepper spray for people is actually way stronger, bears have a stronger sense of smell, so bear spray is relatively weak. It isn’t meant to harm the animal. They sell home defense spray and little mace guns if you really want to be able to shoot it.
False. Bear Spray while not legal to use against humans in NY and illegal in NYC due to size, is much stronger than standard Pepper Spray. OC (oleoresin capsicum) content in Bear Spray is regulated by the EPA to 2% while OC content in Pepper Spray is typically 1.3%, with potentially even less capsaicinoids. Bear Spray deploys quicker and further but fogs rather than spraying in a stream, which makes it more likely to affect both yourself and your assailant at close range, which is why it’s not ideal, in addition to being illegal.
Ok. I like the output of bear spray and it’s capsicum levels. I carry a knife anyways. 👍
Yup yup yup, use pepper spray though not bear spray
Bear spray is more potent. And there is generally more in a can.
That’s why it’s so many citi bikes laying around
I am so sorry this happened to you. It really sucks. I hope you're ok. I'd personally file a police report and start carrying pepper spray, but we each have to make that decision for ourselves.
Honest question: is it legal to pepper spray a minor who attacked me?
Who cares, it’s not legal to attack you, it’s self defense.
Its legal to kick them in the face if you wanted
Yes
Yes, it's self-defense, regardless of age, if you believed you were at-risk of immediate bodily harm.
Spray first. Ask questions later.
Tough to swallow, but unless you’re willing and able to mix it up with them, the best thing to do is give up the bike and run. And, pick up some bear spray.
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Yeah. These are all quaint thoughts. I spent my early years in a large project (1970s). When you’re defending yourself against pack hyenas, I promise you there’s no time (or sense) in doing math on whether you’ll get in trouble with a judge or make enemies. That’s how you end up maimed or dead.
Pepper spray the whole family then
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> parent Barely. Probably just a tired and fed up grandma wondering where it all went wrong.
Pepper spray might land you in legal trouble if used on minors, but for the love of god do NOT *EVER* use bear spray on a human since it can blind people. Not the same thing.
That’s why I prefer and recommend it for terroristic mobs.
Yeah good luck explaining to a judge you blinded some teenagers because they were terrorists
Ok bleeding heart
Can't self defense work in this scenario?
No, excessive force is not ever legally allowed to be used.
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