Occupy Wall Street protester Cecily McMillan is about to get her wish to occupy public space. Too bad for her it’s likely to be a jail cell.
This week, a New York jury convicted McMillan of felony assault against Police Officer Grantley Bovell. The assault took place in March 2012, when cops were clearing protesters from Zuccotti Park.
McMillan elbowed the officer in the face but claimed he assaulted her first — and that a smartphone or camera would prove it.
Surprise! The video shows McMillan as the aggressor. And the report from her hospital visit that night showed no bruises.
Had McMillan copped to a misdemeanor, she probably could have walked away with a slap on the wrist, especially since this was her first arrest. Twice she was offered a non-jail plea. She rejected the offers because she wanted to put “the system” and the NYPD on trial and make herself a cause célèbre for the protest movement.
Since her conviction, nine of the 12 jurors have asked the court for leniency in sentencing, given that McMillan faces as much as seven years. We’ll leave it to the judge to determine the appropriate penalty for someone who assaulted a cop and then put the city through an unnecessary trial.
And if it does land her some prison time, she has only herself to blame.