By: Ellen Cans
A candidate for State Assembly in Manhattan was arrested by police after allegedly smashing the windshield of a car on June 19 during a Black Lives Matter protest in the Upper East Side.
As reported by the NY Post, the NYPD identified Patrick Bobilin based on video footage, as one of two men smashing an SUV of a 23-year-old driver. In the video, it looks like Bobilin, wearing a black Colin Kaepernick T-shirt, is striking the windshield using a dark object. “Two individuals banged on his vehicle while he was stopped at the intersection, smashed the front windshield window and caused damage to the hood,” said police spokeswoman Annette Shelton.
Both Bobilin and his pal were charged with criminal mischief, disorderly conduct and harassment, Shelton said. The 37-year-old progressive is a candidate for the New York State Assembly in Manhattan’s 76th district. The Democrat previously ran for City Council for District 5 in 2017, but was defeated. Known as a Democratic Socialist, Bobilin had been marching with protesters in the wave of protests rallying the death of George Floyd in the custody of police in Minneapolis. Bobilin is a longtime Upper East Side community activist, former vice president of the East River Democratic Club and a former public school teacher. Bobilin confirmed that he helped organize protests in Manhattan, including ones at Gracie Mansion.
Bobilin’s case is still active. Bobilin declined to give details about how he broke the windshield, but he maintained his actions were defensive after the driver had tried to “ram” into the protesters. “I saw people at risk and I saw something like what happened in Charlottesville,” said Bobilin, who has treated the arrest as a badge of honor. “My body drew me to throw myself on top of that car to make sure it did not harm one of my neighbors. When someone is weaponizing their motor vehicle against someone’s body, there is zero justification for that.”
The driver has not been charged. Videos of the incident posted on social media shows protesters blocking traffic, marching down Lexington Avenue. The crowd began pounding on the dark SUV after the driver honked at them and tried to drive through the intersection during a green light.
