Comic Elayne Boosler states she was arrested and held in handcuffs for two hours Sunday at Dodger Stadium just after arguing with an staff who would not enable her enter with a purse that violated the stadium’s distinct bag coverage.
In a 3½-moment video posted to Boosler’s YouTube channel later on that day, the 71-yr-outdated mentioned she ultimately was allowed to go away on her possess, without the need of currently being despatched “to jail downtown.”
But the “Celebration of A person” star built it very clear she continue to had a beef with the Dodgers business, in distinct the employee who would not let her pass with a non-see-as a result of bag that was decorated like a baseball to check out the Dodgers play the New York Mets.
“Shame on you, Dodger Stadium. Shame on you,” explained Boosler, who in the movie displayed bruises on her wrists that she reported were from the handcuffs. “You know me. I’ve done so considerably cost-free function for you for decades. And even if I was not me, if I was just a shopper who was coming to the sport, to be taken care of like that, for any one to be treated like that is so dreadful. You need to have to chat to your personnel and you definitely need to have to get rid of that guy with the little, little bit of electric power who is certainly not a people person.”
Boosler backtracked a little bit Tuesday in an e mail to The Periods.
“Of class I don’t want the dude to be fired,” she wrote. “We were being the two erroneous but he was more completely wrong and it escalated when it shouldn’t have. I went to Dodger game titles final 12 months with a frequent purse and in no way had an situation so I was rather surprised about the complete point.”
She’s nevertheless not fully joyful with the Dodgers firm.
“A Dodger government called me yesterday and apologized and that would have been cool besides for the compact fib he fed me, which is form of insulting to females,” she wrote. “He mentioned there was almost nothing the Dodgers could do about the bag coverage due to the fact it was MLB coverage across the board. Nicely I looked that up today and MLB leaves bag plan up to particular person groups. You can provide a typical purse to Red Sox Yankees Mets Cardinals Cubs etc and so on games.”
The Dodgers declined to comment for this story.
In her video, Boosler states that her bag was “10 inches across.” According to the bag coverage on the Dodgers’ web page, the only non-distinct luggage allowed have to be scaled-down than 5 inches by 8 inches by 2 inches in dimensions. Based on the bag guidelines on the websites of the other 5 groups Boosler mentions, it does seem her bag would have been permitted at those people teams’ stadiums.
Boosler also stated in her e mail to The Times that the Dodgers consultant who known as her “also said the Dodgers send out 200 to 300 girls a match back to their cars to depart their purses. Why is that acceptable to any one? Men go into the stadium with non-very clear fanny packs, bursting pockets, whatsoever, and women are pressured to carry Purses by Reynolds Wrap with female cleanliness products and solutions sticking out and ample hard cash so decide pockets know precisely whom to strike up.”
She added: “Enough by now. Treat females greater.”
Boosler is acknowledged as a pioneer for gals in the earth of stand-up comedy, getting results in the 1970s and 1980s when the discipline was largely dominated by adult men. In 2018, she was bundled in CNN’s checklist of “Groundbreaking women in American comedy.” She has appeared in The Times as a contributor, writing appreciation items for late comedians Judy Tenuta in 2022 and Richard Lewis previous month, and an view piece on comic strips in 2003.
Aside from her significant responses about the Dodgers and their bag coverage, Boosler did provide the jokes in her e mail to The Periods two days right after the incident. In response to one particular problem, she wrote: “My wrists were rather injured, but nothing that say a Rolex from the Dodgers wouldn’t make experience far better. You know, just the neat temp of it …”
Requested if there was nearly anything she wished she experienced finished otherwise Sunday, Boosler responded: “Yes. I desire I experienced absent to a Giants video game.”
Just after every thing that occurred, does she plan to go to Dodgers games in the potential?
“Yes,” Boosler wrote. “When they enjoy at Citi Industry.”
In her YouTube video, Boosler reported she was established to attend the Mets-Dodgers game that afternoon with her nephew and his 8-12 months-aged baby. “I was so energized to provide my new very little baseball bag into the stadium,” she reported.
“They stated, ‘Nope, you have to carry it again to the auto or toss it away,’” Boosler mentioned in the video. “And I said, ‘Wow, the motor vehicle — let’s see, we paid $50 to park a mile absent and it’s 80 degrees and the tickets have been $300 in the secondary market. And nowhere did I see it say it has to be a very clear bag. You should let me in.’”
Boosler mentioned that the dialogue “got heated” and she did drop “an F-bomb” but the dialogue all round “was peaceful.”
Her nephew and his youngster were being authorized to enter, Boosler stated, but she was explained to she would “be arrested for trespassing” if she didn’t leave.
“I explained, ‘Fine. Arrest me,’” she mentioned in the online video. “So they did. They arrested me, they cuffed me powering my back, they place me in a black and white squad car.”
Boosler extra: “I have to say the cops, person and lady, have been extremely good. Certainly, I’m white, I know that, but they ended up awesome. In any case, obtained to the Dodger Stadium place of work — they experienced to push charges ‘cause the man wouldn’t give up. And the men and women in the office environment had been pretty awesome actually, even however I was handcuffed behind my again and then handcuffed to a bench.”
After two several hours, Boosler claimed, “Finally they reported, ‘Well, if you agree to leave, you know, we never have to mail you to jail downtown.’ And I mentioned, ‘OK, I guess so.’ And so I did go away in a squad motor vehicle to go phone a automobile to occur.”
A spokesperson for the Los Angeles Police Department explained to The Instances he was not able to affirm any of Boosler’s tale but said there was no file of her currently being booked Sunday.
