NEW YORK (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) -- A man has been banned from riding the Long Island Rail Road for two years after he pleaded guilty to sexually abusing a conductor.
Officials announced the transit ban Thursday, saying it’s the first of its kind in the history of the MTA.
The subject of the ban, Michael Harewood, pleaded guilty in Suffolk County Supreme Court to third-degree sex abuse. As part of his sentencing, he agreed to not use the LIRR for two years, officials said.
“This case demonstrates the urgency of our call for the justice system to pursue bans for those criminals who seek to target transit workers or customers,” MTA chair and CEO Janno Lieber said in a statement.
“We must do everything in our power to keep riders and workers safe,” Lieber continued, “and by banning this criminal from the system, the Court has done just that. He’s a bad actor who was clearly using the railroad not for transportation but to commit crimes; that won’t happen for the next two years with this individual.”
Few details about the attack were released by officials, but an order of protection was issued for the LIRR conductor in the case.
The ban was made possible through a recently passed New York state law that allows people who’ve committed crimes against transit workers or sex offenses on public transportation to be banned for up to three years, officials said.
LIRR interim president Catherine Rinaldi, who also heads Metro-North, hailed the ban, saying, “customers and workers can ride easier today, knowing that a criminal with a history of preying on railroad workers is banned from the rails.” She said Harewood won’t be able to ride LIRR until the end of 2024.
Anthony Simon, the general chairman of SMART, the union that represents LIRR workers, called the move “a step in the right direction.” He said the union will “continue to fight for even more severe penalties for those individuals who assault our LIRR employees.”
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