Police caller must pay harassed BLM protesters $4.5K

SCHENECTADY, N.Y. (AP) — A former ice cream shop owner accused of calling police on peaceful Black Lives Matters protesters was ordered by a judge to pay nine people he harassed $500 each. Attorney General Letitia James’ complaint against the former owner of Bumpy’s Polar Freeze in Schenectady alleges that David Elmendorf wielded a baton and air rifle and shouted racial epithets at protesters. They had come to his business to protest after racist text messages he allegedly wrote circulated on social media. Elmendorf also was accused of calling 911 to falsely report that armed protesters were threatening to shoot him. Elmendorf’s attorney said that the allegations were “categorically false.”