Bear Writer Alex O’Keefe Handcuffed on Metro-North Train After Woman Complains about His Posture.
Former Bear writer Alex O’Keefe got handcuffed on a Metro-North train Thursday, September 18, because a passenger raised a complaint. MTA confirmed to PEOPLE that a writer was detained while traveling to Connecticut for the story.
On the same day, O’Keefe shared a short video on Instagram showing how the incident unfolded. He explained a White woman alerted the conductor to the way he, a 31-year-old Black man, was seated. The video captures the moments when authorities put the handcuffs on him, though the MTA later confirmed he was not officially arrested.
People jumped in the comments quickly, sharing stories of similar situations. O’Keefe stayed visible on social media, explaining legal rights that apply even on a train. His day didn’t start that way, but the experience turned into a discussion the rail authority didn’t see coming.
“I’m the only Black man on this train,” O’Keefe told the MTA cops, voice calm but heated. “Some White lady says she doesn’t like how I’m sitting, and you call the cops. So basically, the one Black dude here ends up being the one you arrest.”He repeated, “I didn’t do anything illegal,” over and over as the officers cuffed him. One officer said he was “resisting arrest,” to which O’Keefe replied, “For what?” They said “disorderly conduct.”
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Later, he shared the whole story on social media. The post went up with a photo of the woman who made the call, the woman who sat two seats over and a quick clip of him, wrists in cuffs, facing a wall on a dark Bronx train platform. Four officers wrote the report while the train whooshed by.The MTA issued a statement saying O’Keefe’s position was against the rules—his legs were across an empty seat, arms crossed like a barrier. Security footage backed the claim, which the MTA had on hand.
The MTA reported that the trouble began around 10:30 a.m. on Thursday, September 18, when officers were alerted to a “disorderly passenger” on a train traveling from Grand Central to New Haven, Connecticut.According to the MTA, a conductor told police that a man was taking up two seats by resting his feet on one. When officers arrived, he ignored their orders to leave the train. The officers then escorted him to the platform so he could catch the next train. The train waited an extra six minutes for the situation to be resolved.
At about 10:50 a.m., a summons for disorderly conduct was issued to a Sean O’Keefe of Hamden, Connecticut, the MTA said. The man accepted the ticket and boarded the next train without further incident. On September 22, during a press conference on semi-related topics, MTA Chairman Janno Lieber revisited the incident. “If you’re putting your feet on the seats,” he noted, “you’re breaking the rules of our commuter railroad and of the subway system of the whole MTA.”
Lieber mentioned he hasn’t viewed the footage yet, yet he stated, “Folks shouldn’t hold the train for a long chat with anyone.” “Do the police really need to step in just because a guy won’t lift his sneakers? Just get a grip—feet belong down and not on shared surfaces. It isn’t complicated, and it isn’t just about the seat, either—courtesy counts. So we’ll step in, review the footage, and sort out the rest of the overly complicated drama that comes from a conversation most folks could settle in ten seconds.”
