The New York Post says the tech attacked the customer after he asked to see some ID before allowing access to the apartment.
"You want to know my name? Here's my name," Benjamin snarled, slapping his ID card into Isakson's face, according to Isakson's account of the December 2008 confrontation.
"The guy essentially snapped. He cold-cocked me, hit me two or three solid shots to the head while my hands were down," said Isakson, a limo driver.
He said the pounding bloodied his face and broke his glasses.
But things got uglier, Isakson said, when Benjamin squeezed him around the neck and pressed him up against the wall.
"He's prepared to kill me," Isakson said. "That's all I could think of."
The customer broke free and ran away. The Verizon tech then chased the customer until he was subdued by a neighbor who was an off-duty cop.
The DA apparently agreed to dismiss the case and Verizon didn't fire the guy because, "In the months since this incident, his conduct has been blameless. As a result, we will not take further action."
THIS PHONE GUY'S WORSE THAN 'THE CABLE GUY' [NYP via Gothamist]
(Photo:20 buckz)
I'm going to go out on a limb here and say this is the classic black guy vs. jewish guy scenario which never bodes well.
]]>@JennQPublic: From the article, my impression is that the reason the customer was suspicious was because Verizon had specifically told him that the tech would NOT need entry to his home.
]]>@Nighthawke: Maybe the DA is a FiOS customer and now has free 20/20 internet, phone, and premium cable service.
]]>No one can? Aren't you doing that very thing?
]]>Is this a joke or a troll or what? Seriously. You have never seen anyone in the world that could be described as (insert adjective)-looking? You need to get out more.
]]>That is incorrect. The tech slapped his ID into the customer's face: "'You want to know my name? Here's my name,' Benjamin snarled, slapping his ID card into Isakson's face".
Benjamin is the Verizon worker, Isakson is the customer.
]]>Now, if the guy had bumped into the Verizon tech when said tech was off-duty at the corner McDonald's, and the altercation ensued, that would be a little different.
]]>There's nothing in this that requires making up facts. It's a "he said/he said" situation, and the DA did not believe a crime could be proven beyond a reasonable doubt. The end.
]]>(Disclaimer: I work in retail and I have had the urge to beat the fuck out of certain customers every so often, though by the grace of God, I have so far been able to control myself.)
]]>I saw in the N Y POST article where the actual problem was outside and Verizon didn't have to get back in that customers house . If I read correctly the customer was already told that the problem was outside .
I can see where the customer was coming from . I've done service work and yeh it's frustrating that with a uniform , hard had and work order or trouble ticket that you are still asked for ID but that's the nature of the beast . After 9-11 alot place wanted to see your drivers license as well .
But irreguardless of how the tech thought the customer was treating him until he is physically attacked he is paid to keep cool .
Alot of this has it's roots in the monopoly days of the phone company / Ma Bell . This guy is too young to have been with them before the break-up but there are still enough old timers around to have influenced his attitude as in " I work for a major utility and can do anything I want " or " don't you realize who I work for " meaning a big spoiled brat monopoly .
Unless Verizon actually told him ' No you can not beat the customers ' they could be held liable . And I would bet this is how the union kept him out of any serious trouble by bringing up what he was actually told about beating up customers or the use of physical force .
I know guys who worked for them and they were told you should only take your drivers license and lunch money out on the street because they weren't reimbursing any robbery losses and you were expected to surrender what you had without struggle .
]]>Years ago, a story like this about New York Telephone would surprize me. Today, nothing I hear about Verizon suprizes me. The bullying extends into their higher levels of management. I know, I work for them. Not too long ago, my boss assaulted me. After I complained about the matter, I was transferred, but my boss was not disciplined; I was then led to believe I should not complain any further about the matter--if I wanted to keep my job--wink, wink, nod, nod. A totally disfunctional company, from the very top down.
]]>It's like if you shoot someone who's attacking you and they go down and lose their weapon. At that point, it's self defense. If you then continue to shoot the disarmed victim who no longer poses a threat, you can no longer argue self-defense.
]]>People can "look" mean, just like they can "look" friendly. But way to jump to conclusions of racism.
]]>@Drew5764: Actually, Bernie Goetz had a .38 Special. [en.wikipedia.org]
]]>In five years of doing cable work I only had one guy insist to see my ID. The guys was a huge douche.
]]>@Esquire99: You may have a point there, Esquire99.
On the other hand, they may be able to argue that, in the tech's view, he WAS acting in the interests of the principal. After all, the customer DID ask him for his name, to which the tech responded "You want to know my name? Here's my name!" and then punched him in the face. If the tech is named Mr.Punchintheface, the company should have known this problem may arise.
Seriously though, the tech could seem to be trying to act in the interest of the principal. He had a job to do and that job required him to enter the customer's home. When the customer refused, the tech's action could be seen as an attempt to perform his job by attacking the customer in order to gain entry.
Of course, such an interpretation would require that the tech be a hot-headed moron but I think the story already established that to be a likely possibility.
]]>@SkokieGuy:
The DA dropping the case is only half of what makes this unbelievable. Verizon didn't fire the guy because his conduct since has been "blameless"? Seriously, Verizon? So, if you work for Verizon and go out and kick someone's ass while on the job for no reason at all, you can have the charges dropped AND not lose your job as long as your conduct thereafter is "blameless"?
I had two such incidents just today!
]]>I'm not a boxing fan but I'd sure watch this match!
]]>Hell, I think it should be some type of requirement to wear a badge/tag on your shirt if you are out in the field.
]]>Ah, MAD. How good it USED to be.
]]>
I'm guessing the case was dismissed because of what the cop saw, which was probably inconsistent with what the consumer is claiming.
That would be my bet for the win. the consumer figured they would just take it to the internet where no one can question it. Isn't the internet great!
Almost as bad as the dell guy who was selling the parts he was getting from dell on ebay and came to consumerist to complain about dell not fixing it. Yea dell was fixing the problem, he just kept selling the video cards on ebay. After he was caught he changed his ebay name again.
]]>I love it! When I buy an uzi and kill some idiots, I hope I get the same attorney. I am a real saint.
]]>@Esquire99: I agree . If nothing else it was probably a weak case for the DA to prosecute . And you don't know what was said or the sequence of events .
BUT - big BUT when you are on the clock being paid by someone to offer customer service you are also being paid to keep calm & cool . Unless that customer physically attacks you no matter what language was hurled your way you don't do squat . I don't care if the customer is a scamming liar as the employee or paid service provider you are " the professional " is supposed to walk away . If anything you call dispatch and your supervisor and tell them this customer is too beligerent for me to handle .
And since alot of the telcos are represented by a union I'm sure they told the company the samething the DA told the original complaintant that there isn't enough hear to justify a charge/termination .
]]>@eccsame: Given the derth of details in this story, it's all speculation. I'd like to know if they examined the alleged assailants hands, for example.
However, taking the story on its face, when one person is devoid of injury pursuing another who is bloodied & terrified, it would seem unlikely that a self-defense claim would be reasonable.
And it would appear (from the story again) that the off-duty cop would be witness to the chase and the physical state of both men, if not the incident itself.
]]>Yeah, but it would damn well be a healthy paranoia...
]]>LOL! You win.
]]>I agree, there is more to this story@Smashville:
]]>@joshuadavis: Even if the customer started the fight, the tech should have still been arrested for assault. Just because you hit in response to someone else's hitting (if the customer started the fight using physical, rather than verbal attacks) doesn't mean you're not responsible.
]]>This reminds me about the time in 2005 when a customer was mugged by her Fresh Direct delivery guy. Fresh Direct's idea of handling the problem was to put that employee on a different route -- making him someone else's problem.
[nyc.metblogs.com]
@LupusGray: Ok, so I guess this isn't true either: [www.nypost.com]
]]>oh I can't wait for the second person this idiot beats up.
verizon will be answering the question from his lawyer "can you hear me now!!!!"
Why should he need to be fired to prevent future incidents? Why can't losing his job be the consequences for bad behavior?
/sigh at Verizon :(
]]>I'm not sure I believe Verizon should have any liability here.
I'd agree with you, if VZ would deal with the employee appropriately. They fire the guy, then say "We didn't see that coming, but we definitely dealt with it swiftly and harshly. We don't tolerate that behavior from our employees." Since they seem to be refusing, then VZ is definitely opening itself up to blame.
It's not like "but I haven't killed anybody else" works to keep murderers out of prison.
]]>With a witness?
Sounds like there is more to the story than what we are being told.
]]>@LupusGray: Is that the same National Enquirer that broke the John Edwards scandal? Even tabloids get it right every now and again.
]]>@eccsame: But how is this different from the countless domestic abuse cases around the country that essentially boil down to he said/she said?
]]>Dear ehejl,
There is no such word as "alledgedly".
Love,
Meg
]]>@viqas: Not entirely. Its more complicated than that. Was he an employee or contractor? Was he acting for the benefit of Verizon, by doing that he did (likely not)? Was it outside of the scope of his employment (likely)? Depending on the state law, Respondeat Superior may not apply.
]]>@wkm001: Link? Most Comcast techs are independent contractors and I imagine that Verizon operates the same way. I guess neither of us will know without more information.
]]>@JennQPublic: Right, and if the customer visibly has injury, how come the tech didn't - what, did the customer swing and miss and the tech hit him in self defense?
]]>You know, I just searched [iapps.courts.state.ny.us] and I'm not bringing up a lawsuit. :(
]]>Guess you've never dealt with the public. Some people just have it coming, and it takes nearly superhuman control not to slug them.
]]>Dear Meg Marco,
Stories like this are the reason we use the word "alledgedly".
]]>I wonder if some people in the DA's office got a nice free FIOS install, complete with NOT setting the house on fire.
]]>"We think we figured out what the problem was," Isakson recalled them saying. "They didn't even need to send this guy."
Did anyone else lol after reading that bit?
]]>@MostlyHarmless: How does that make him racist? Sensitive? Maybe. Presumptuous? Ok. Racist? No.
That's like calling a woman sexist because she yelled at her male co-worker who she assumed had been looking down her shirt.
]]>@wkm001: Do Verizon techs belong to a union?
]]>One word. Union.
]]>@joshuadavis: True. However, he was spotted chasing after the customer, he was caught by an off-duty cop, he was arrested and charged. If the customer had started it, I think (unless the tech is Buffy or a Cylon) he would have wounds of some kind - bruises, a cut, a scrape, something.
]]>@strathmeyer: What? He's black. Who exactly is he racist against?
]]>If a pilot gets drunk and crashes a plane, you don't sue the pilot, you sue the airline. Same goes here...
]]>@itiswhatitis: What I want to know is, have there been incidents in his personal life? Just because you're not on the radar at work doesn't mean you're nice or harmless - are people staying away from him at work? Tech service is more or less a one-person operation. It's not as if he would have opportunity to hang out with other techs on a call. So what about his employment conduct? He might not beat on customers all the time, but does he give people the creeps?
]]>@Radi0logy: "There's something missing" - how about sanity?
]]>There's clearly something missing here.
- Guy answers door and asks for ID.
- Verizon tech punches him and then chases him.
- Verizon doesn't fire him and DA drops charges. If it were Verizon just not firing him, I'd think it was fishy...but if the DA dropped the charges, I have to think there's more to it.
Haven't the events of the past few months shown us that racist people freak out when asked for identification?
]]>Wow, homeboy should have been fired right on the spot. How does one get to keep their job after beating the crap out of a customer?
]]>Timid guy, "Um, excuse me kind sir, but might I bother you for some identification? This isn't the best of neighboorhoods and..."
Roidrage Verizon guy, "WHAT?? I WILL KILL YOU MOTHERF**KER!!!!"
Theres something missing.
]]>If there was a shadier-looking Verizon tech, I have not seen him. That photo that came with the NY Post article was kind of a slap in the face unto itself. However, the glass he's holding looks like one of my glasses, and that's just not right.
What is unclear from the article is how the guy got off? Why the prosecution neglected to go after the guy? The case was solid. There was an off-duty police officer, an arrest report and the guy was charged.
I found this article, with the headline "Can You Fear Me Now?" which made me laugh a little. [www.nbcnewyork.com]
]]>@SkokieGuy: Working for the OPD I unfortunately saw many cases much worse than this get dismissed for some schmoozy little deal made between lawyers unbeknownst to the victim.
]]>@Esquire99: They took no action when they were alerted to the problem. Almost any company would fire you for beating someone up and trying to kill them, especially while you were on the clock and representing their company. It's unbelievable that he hasn't been fired.
]]>@Esquire99: As JBUZZ said, regardless of if they had any previous warning, they sure do now, and to not fire him is to take a massive risk.
If he acts out again, they will have no defense, as his propensity for on-the-job violence is now well documented.
]]>@JBUZZ: Assuming the next guy isn't killed.
]]>and Verizon didn't fire the guy because, "In the months since this incident, his conduct has been blameless. As a result, we will not take further action."
oh I can't wait for the second person this idiot beats up.
verizon will be answering the question from his lawyer "can you hear me now!!!!"
notice they didn't say he was demoted or sent for training or anger management so the problem is not solved just pushed down the road to the manager in charge next time he flips out.
please please please let him assault me. I need the money!!!
]]>Well, not only will the customer mentioned here win a law suit but so will the next person- when this guy snaps again. Pure negligence not to fire this guy and that's how they'll rule the next time this guy snaps.
]]>X2 WTF!
]]>An off-duty COP is a witness and the DA dismissed? Un-f-ing believable!!!!!
]]>