NYC arrest records: Many Occupy Wall Street protesters live in luxury

[Dave]

I don't imagine this story is going too come to much of a surprise to any of you either... I've thought for a good portion of the protest that there are a number of people at them that are far from poor. Kind of odd that a few of the 1% are protesting against themselves isn't it? Specially the celebs. It's to bad that whatever message the OWS group might of had is long gone. Of course none of what they are doing is going to amount to anything anyway... for starters they been protesting in the wrong place. If they wanted to protest where it might make a difference, Washington DC would of been the spot... and not just anywhere in DC, go to the Capital, The Mall or 1600 Pennsylvania Ave and let them know what you want.

 

Many “Occupy Wall Street” protesters arrested in New York City “occupy” more luxurious homes than their “99 percent” rhetoric might suggest, a Daily Caller investigation has found.

For each of the 984 Occupy Wall Street protesters arrested in New York City between September 18 and October 15, police collected and filed an information sheet recording the arrestee’s name, age, sex, criminal charge, home address and — in most cases — race. The Daily Caller has obtained all of this information from a source in the New York City government.

Among addresses for which information is available, single-family homes listed on those police intake forms have a median value of $305,000 — a far higher number than the $185,400 median value of owner-occupied housing units in the United States.

Some of the homes where “Occupy” arrestees reside, viewed through Google Maps and the Multiple Listing Service real estate database, are the definition of opulence.

Using county assessors and online resources such as Zillow.com, TheDC estimated property values and rents for 87 percent of the homes and 59 percent of the apartments listed in the arrest records.

Even in the nation’s currently depressed housing market, at least 95 of the protesters’ residences are worth approximately $500,000 or more. (RELATED SLIDESHOW: Opulent homes of the ’99 percent’)

The median monthly rent for those living in apartments whose information is readily available is $1,850.

Of the 984 protesters arrested, at least 797 are white. The median age of “Occupy” protesters taken into custody is 27 years.

Ten demonstrators were arrested more than once. Most of the arrests, it should be noted, were for nonviolent offenses.

The arrest intake documents show that arrestees came to New York from all over the country but particularly from the Northeast.

Criminal charges ranged from “loitering while wearing a mask” and “failure to move along” to “violent behavior” and other more serious charges such as “assault 2 [second-degree assault] caus[ing] physical injury to police [or] firemen.” There was also one charge of “sex abuse 3 [third-degree].” Hundreds were arrested on October 1 for obstructing traffic on the Brooklyn Bridge.

While it would not be fair to conclude that the arrested protesters are fully representative of a movement that is not completely understood, this information forms the most complete snapshot yet of the demonstrations’ more militant participants.

It also reinforces the persistent critique of protesters as entitled, upper-class agitators with few legitimate grievances.

London’s Daily Mail newspaper, for example, recently highlighted signs of wealth among the throngs in Zuccotti Park.

“Sleeping beside the hardcore activists are increasing numbers of wealthy students turning up to make the most of the party atmosphere, drugs and free food,” reporters Paul Bentley and Micela McLucas wrote in October. “While they dress down to blend in, the youngsters’ privileged backgrounds are revealed by glimpses of expensive gadgetry or the absent minded mention of their private schools during heated political debates.”

“I think that it’s accurate to say that our supporters come from all backgrounds,” Patrick Bruner, the operator of OccupyWallStreet.org, a website dedicated to help organize and spread information about the protests, told TheDC when asked about participants from wealthier backgrounds. “That said, a (non-random) survey on our site revealed that our visitors literally are the 99% in regards to economic realities.”

The national median home value of $185,400 reflects U.S. Census statistics from the years 2005 through 2009, the last year data were available.

TheDC was able to estimate home values and apartment rents for 659 of the 972 residences. Thirteen were in university dormitories; six were post office boxes; four were addresses in foreign countries. Many addresses proved to be nonexistent, and a few were not provided to police.

TheDC has elected not to publish personally identifying information.

Gracie Ferrell and Meg Gasvoda contributed reporting to this story.

http://news.yahoo.com/nyc-arrest-records-many-occupy-wall-street-pr...

[Lisa O'Brien]

The National Median home value is useless. Here in the NYC- Long Island area even the smallest most run down looking crack house is at least $250,000 and the property taxes are even more outrageous. I just moved into a place in Nassua County Long Island and just the property tax/house insurance is over $1300 a month - for comparison that is the total of my property taxes for my house 20 miles outside of Detroit.

[Willy]

Lisa

It appears that NYC has serious property value problems and deplorable tax rates. It is the same situation in LA LA land where I lived for quite some time. A little shack would fetch $300,000. Of course, this is one of the contributing factors to our housing bust. Hyper inflated property values have caught many homeowners off guard. They now owe more than their house is worth. 

[Willy]

Good article Dave and no surprise. If these people had half a brain they would be outside Congress and the White House complaining. The only 99% [what they call themselves] I can relate to is that 99% of the demonstrators don't know anything about Socialistic Communism or Democratic Republics. I have never seen so many people do so much complaining about about a country that has bent over backwards to feed the hungry and clothe the poor. Even the poorest folks have food and shelter [not counting the homeless drunks and addicts, or mentally disabled], TV, cell phones, ect. Also included are all the social services available, food stamps, welfare, child care and on and on. I have a friend who works for social services and he tells me how people receiving money from the Gov. call it their "paycheck".