‘Your mask makes you look stupid:’ Calif. man under investigation after allegedly spitting, coughing on children

Jan. 25, 2022Updated: Jan. 25, 2022 4:04 p.m.

A video of a California man swearing and yelling anti-mask propaganda near children in a parking lot went viral, prompting an investigation by sheriff’s deputies, the East Bay Times reported.

The video, which went viral on the Reddit forum r/publicfreakout, was allegedly recorded by a parent outside a La Crescenta shopping mall. In it, a middle-aged man hurls insults at onlookers and accuses them of being “hypnotized by fear,” all while wearing a T-shirt that says “Your mask makes you look stupid.” Five of those onlookers appear to be middle-school age boys. 

Following the display, the Crescenta Valley station of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department released a statement on Monday announcing they would investigate the situation. However, families protested saying that they haven’t taken enough action. 

Parents say that this man has been following and harassing elementary and middle school children for months, CBS Los Angeles reported. And when an officer finally did arrive onsite, he reprimanded the children instead. “He decided to lecture the kids about freedom of speech instead of taking their names and writing an incident report,” parent Emily Lanigan told the news station.

According to KTLA, on January 24, a caller told the sheriff’s department that he was spitting on children, coughing in their faces and “poking heads into vehicles.” Several of the children also said that he spat on them during his tirade.  

“Clearly there is a problem here, not just a mental health problem but an anger management issue where he feels compelled to attack people who are more vulnerable than him,” Lanigan told CBS Los Angeles.  

Early this month, following a series of similar incidents, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti announced that the Los Angeles Police Department would arrest anti-maskers who harass others. While enforcing public health orders is not a priority for local police departments, when people “start jeopardizing other people’s health and other people’s family members, that’s a bridge too far,” he told the Los Angeles Times. 

According to Lt. Robert Hahnlein of the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department, deputies are currently working with Glendale police to investigate the man identified in the video. 

Jan. 25, 2022Updated: Jan. 25, 2022 4:04 p.m. La Crescenta, Montrose and Glendale in Los Angeles County, California. Getty Images A video of a California man swearing and yelling anti-mask propaganda near children in a parking lot went viral, prompting an investigation by sheriff’s deputies, the East Bay Times reported. The video, which went viral on the Reddit forum r/publicfreakout, was allegedly recorded by a parent outside a La Crescenta shopping mall. In it, a middle-aged man hurls insults at onlookers and accuses them of being “hypnotized by fear,” all while wearing a T-shirt that says “Your mask makes you look stupid.” Five of those onlookers appear to be middle-school age boys.  Following the display, the Crescenta Valley station of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department released a statement on Monday announcing they would investigate the situation. However, families protested saying that they haven’t taken enough action.  Parents say that this man has been following and harassing elementary and middle school children for months, CBS Los Angeles reported. And when an officer finally did arrive onsite, he reprimanded the children instead. “He decided to lecture the kids about freedom of speech instead of taking their names and writing an incident report,” parent Emily Lanigan told the news station. According to KTLA, on January 24, a caller told the sheriff’s department that he was spitting on children, coughing in their faces and “poking heads into vehicles.” Several of the children also said that he spat on them during his tirade.   “Clearly there is a problem here, not just a mental health problem but an anger management issue where he feels compelled to attack people who are more vulnerable than him,” Lanigan told CBS Los Angeles.   Early this month, following a series of similar incidents, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti announced that the Los Angeles Police Department would arrest anti-maskers who harass others. While enforcing public health orders is not a priority for local police departments, when people “start jeopardizing other people’s health and other people’s family members, that’s a bridge too far,” he told the Los Angeles Times.  According to Lt. Robert Hahnlein of the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department, deputies are currently working with Glendale police to investigate the man identified in the video.