While responding to reports of a a suspicious person, police found an 18-year-old man wearing a black ski mask that covered his face displayed other suspicious behavior, including attempting to conceal a large bulge in his waistband that turned out to be a 14-inch knife.
Wednesday, August 28, 2024 2:33AMPolice in Nassau County made the first arrest under a new local law banning face masks, officials announced Tuesday.
The department said the 18-year-old resident displayed other suspicious behavior, including attempting to conceal a large bulge in his waistband and refusing to comply with the officers' commands. Lt. Scott Skrynecki, a police department spokesperson, said Ramirez Castillo will also be facing a misdemeanor violation of the face mask law in the coming days.
Keith Ross, a criminal justice professor at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York City, said police didn't necessarily need the new law to stop and question Ramirez Castillo, but it helped bolster their justification. "There is no basis to believe that wearing a face mask was intended to conceal identity or criminal behavior, and if that was the basis of the stop I believe there is a basis to conclude the stop was unlawful," he wrote in an email.
Disability Rights of New York, a group that advocates for people with disabilities, filed a legal challenge last week arguing that the mask law is unconstitutional and discriminates against people with disabilities.
Mask Ban Arrest Teen Arrested Wearing Mask Nassau Police New York New Law 15236975
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