Viral NYC Hospital Worker Paid For Citi Bike, Lawyer Says: Report

NEW YORK CITY — A New York City hospital worker seen in a viral video isn't a "Karen" and Citi Bike receipts prove it, her lawyer and family contend, according to a report.

The woman — identified as Sarah Comrie in a fundraiser set up by her uncle — paid for a Citi Bike that a young Black man argued he had reserved and she tried to steal, her lawyer Justin Marino first told the New York Post.

The dispute over the Citi Bike was captured in a controversial two-minute video that caused many to label the woman as "Medical Karen" as they argued she faked tears to gain leverage over a Black man.

But Marino argued to the Post that Citi Bike receipts showed the woman, who is six months pregnant, had paid first for the bike.

“One or more individuals in that group physically pushed her bike (with her on it) back into the docking station, causing it to re-lock,” Marino said in a written statement reported by the Post.

Marino couldn’t be reached to return Patch's request for the statement or to view the receipts.

The Post reported that Marino shared a screenshot that showed the bike's serial number matched a receipt provided by the woman.

The woman worked at Bellevue Hospital, a city Health + Hospitals spokesperson confirmed after the video went viral. She is out on leave and will remain so pending a review, according to a statement from the spokesperson.

"The incident in the video is disturbing," the statement reads.

After the video went viral, the woman's uncle Bob Roe set up a GoFundMe to pay for legal bills to save her livelihood and reputation.

She is not a racist "Karen," Roe wrote on the fundraiser.

"The facts have since proven this is a lie, but the damage has been done," he wrote. In fact, Sarah is a dedicated healthcare worker who is six months pregnant. She holds racial justice and equity dear, and has dedicated her life to serving NYC's most challenged individuals."

But others argued the woman's actions, regardless of whether she paid for the bike, were still problematic and potentially dangerous.

Monique Judge, a journalist, argued the woman's "fake tears" at the expense of Black men are the real issue.

"She knows that white comfort is always prioritized over everything else," Judge wrote. "She is aware that if she makes a loud enough scene, some white man or a cop will come flying in to 'rescue' her."

Judge later reported she spoke also with Marino and viewed the receipts provided to the Post, but couldn't verify them.

"And the bigger issue is this: Even if she had paid for the bike, it was the performance and yelling for help and the fake tears that we all have taken issue with," she tweeted.