The woman who called 911 from Central Park with false accusations against a Black man is now facing misdemeanor charges. The New York Times writes:

Amy Cooper, the woman in the Central Park encounter, which was recorded on video and touched off intense discussions about the history of false reports to the police made by white people and directed at Black people, will be charged with filing a false report, a misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in jail.

“Today our office initiated a prosecution of Amy Cooper for falsely reporting an incident in the third degree,” said Cyrus R. Vance, the Manhattan district attorney. “We are strongly committed to holding perpetrators of this conduct accountable.”

As we reported back in May, Christian Cooper said he was out bird watching when he noticed a dog off its leash. Since leashes are required in that part of the park, Cooper says he asked the woman to restrain her dog. When she didn’t comply, he says he offered her dog treats to stop it from chewing on a tree. That’s when he says Amy Cooper (no relation) called the police and said “There is an African American man. He is recording me and threatening myself and my dog.” Christian Cooper’s sister shared the video, which quickly went viral. Amy Cooper was fired from her job a short time later, with her employer stating, “We do not tolerate racism of any kind.”

This incident was a tipping point of sorts after a series of incidents where white people called police on Black people for doing everyday things.