Former employee was fired after accusing Black bird-watcher of threatening her
The former Franklin Templeton executive who was fired after accusing a Black bird-watcher in Central Park with threatening her has had the case against her dismissed, according to reports.
Amy Cooper, who is white, has completed a racial educational and therapy program.
In July, 2020, the Manhattan district attorney’s office charged Cooper with falsely reporting an incident in the third degree following after a video of her calling the police in May on Christian Cooper, a bird-watcher who had asked that Ms. Cooper leash her dog in Central Park, went viral.
Cooper said she would call the police and tell them “there’s an African-American man threatening my life”.
Assistant Manhattan District Attorney Joan Illuzzi said the charge was dropped after defendant completed court-sanctioned therapy sessions about racial bias, according to Bloomberg News.
In the video, Cooper can be seen telephoning police while holding onto her dog and claiming to the 911 dispatcher that Christian Cooper was threatening her and her dog. Illuzzi added that Christian Cooper had declined to participate in their prosecution of the case.
“After a thorough and honest inquiry, the New York DA’s office dismissed all charges today,” her lawyer, Robert Barnes, said in a statement on Twitter. “We thank them for their integrity and concur w/the outcome.”
