An incident unfolded last month in a New York City fashion boutique, leading to the arrest of a 76-year-old individual. The man in question is Juan Bernal, who recently faced charges for an alleged attack on a local shop owner. The incident reportedly revolved around a prominent display of Vice President Kamala Harris posted in the shop window. After verifying details, the New York City Police Department gave a statement confirming Bernal’s arrest and the charges.
The woman at the heart of this case is the owner of Tanya’s Luxury Fashion Boutique located in Manhattan’s Upper West Side. The boutique owner, also a former participant on the VH1 show ‘Basketball Wives,’ recalled the incident that took place on August 30 outside her shop. She told reporters that the encounter began innocently enough around 1:30 p.m. as she stood in her shop doorway.
She went on to describe how a man, later identified as Bernal, seeming to notice the large poster of Kamala Harris in her store window, along with complimentary t-shirts, walked by her and then doubled back. Bernal is claimed to have expressed his dissatisfaction regarding the display, allegedly motioning to his own t-shirt that favored Harris’ political opponent, Donald Trump. The shop owner recounted how she stepped up to prevent him from entering the store, informing him of her support for Harris.
The interaction, which initially seemed like it could have been a harmless exchange about differing political views, began to take a turn for the worse. The shop owner narrates how the conversation escalated from discussing the presidential campaign to inappropriate comments. Bernal allegedly crossed the line when he started suggesting reasons why Black voters ought to have supported Trump in the election.
Increasingly uncomfortable with the shift in tone, the boutique owner decided there was no point in having further discussions with him. In an unfortunate turn of events, when she refused to engage further, Bernal allegedly retaliated by spitting in her direction. At this unexpectedly hostile act, she found herself having to decide between personally handling the situation or summoning law enforcement assistance.
Following the first alleged spitting incident, things escalated quickly. The owner alleges further instances of aggression, including Bernal spitting in her face once more. This reportedly prompted her to defensively grasp him by the shoulders while instructing onlookers to alert the police.
A sudden jolt of confusion seized her as she alleges Bernal shoved her, accidentally causing her to hit the back of her head on her own store door. Following this unsavory episode, she ripped a piece of his shirt off, in which he had a button pinned that read ‘We stand with Israel.’ The button and torn clothing remained at the scene and were used later as supporting evidence.
ABC News was shown the fragment of clothing and button she had torn away. She later presented these articles to the police officers responding to the 911 calls about the incident. Following the altercation, the New York Police Department spokesperson mentioned that they have commenced an investigation into the reported assault, classifying it as third-degree assault.
Despite aforestated, the incident, occurring within the precinct 20 boundaries, is not currently investigated under the hate crimes category. The New York Police Department did clarify that pending the discovery of substantial evidence, the classification of the crime may be revised and potentially escalated.
The shop owner, however, raised allegations about racial slurs being hurled at her during the incident by Bernal. Interestingly, there’s no reference to this racial context in the incident report generated by NYPD. The omission left her perplexed, causing her to question why the racial components she discussed with the officer didn’t make it into the official report.
Meanwhile, she is awaiting an interview with District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office, where she intends to push for the escalation of charges against Bernal to the bracket of a hate crime. The district attorney’s office has yet to respond to media inquiries about the incident and the ongoing case.
Williams, who incidentally is the ex-wife of former NBA player Jayson Williams, is no stranger to media scrutiny. Jayson Williams had previously confessed to an aggravated assault case involving an accidental shooting of his limo driver in 2002. Despite her previous experiences, the recent incident has left her reeling.
She recently expressed deep appreciation for the widespread support she has received from the New York City community in the wake of the incident. Williams noted that she has even had people traveling from as far as New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Maine to show their solidarity for her.
She emphasized the importance of maintaining a democratic society where political differences are not only allowed but celebrated. Williams stressed, though, that resorting to physical attacks due to these differences is unacceptable. This is a reminder of the existing tensions that lie beneath the surface of political affiliations.
Bernal, on his part, has spoken out against the accusations he is facing. Based on a recent phone conversation with ABC News, he is in the process of seeking legal representation to fight his case. He vehemently denied all allegations against him and is seeking to demonstrate their falsehood in court.
Bernal also declared that he voluntarily went to the police after he came to know about the allegations against him. While he fell short of detailing the events of the incident, he made it clear that legal guidance was his priority. He insisted that he had taken the initiative to explain his version of events to the police but is currently focusing on resolving the legal situation he’s landed in.