A Florida-based USPS mail carrier attacked while making deliveries is now concerned that she may lose her job.
Rose recalled to local station WSVN a violent confrontation that happened to her on March 6 in North Miami. The woman, who did not want her last name used in the report, was delivering mail when two women came by the set of mailboxes, and, as WSVN reported, one of them attempted to grab a package.
“No one is supposed to come and take their mail or package or anything outside of those boxes while we’re delivering,” she told the outlet, adding that she asked the woman for identification or a mailbox key.
That’s when the confrontation got physical, and she started to record the incident.
“They cursed me out, she charged at me while I was recording her, she got upset. She struck me in my face,” Rose explained. “She punched me in my face. That’s when my instant reflex went to go block, hit her back. I did anything that I could to defend myself.”
Rose called the police, and the woman, Alexandra Remolien, was charged with battery as well as listed as the “aggressor” in this case, per the outlet.
Rose, on the other hand, said she had bruises and an aching body from the scuffle that left her “traumatized.”
According to the report, things worsened when Rose learned she was suspended without pay for “willfully delaying mail,” pending an investigation interview. However, she claims that it has yet to be scheduled.
“The lady was charged with battery, I feel like everybody is… against me, like I did something wrong. So basically, what they’re trying to tell me that I should of just stayed there, stayed on the floor, let the lady hit on me, beat on me?” Rose asked. “I was just doing my job. The person who went and attacked me, they’re living their life. She’s out on bond right now and I’m out without a job and that’s not fair.”
Last month, a California USPS worker was randomly punched by a homeless man. And earlier this week in Virginia, a mail carrier was robbed by a gunman. Advocates have been calling for more protections for workers as crimes — especially thefts — against them continue to rise nationwide.
“We need tougher prosecution, federal prosecution to keep the letter carrier safe,” Keisha Lewis of the National Association of Letter Carriers told KCAL.
According to WSVN, the USPS instructs its mail carriers to call law enforcement if an altercation occurs. Although Rose did call 911, she said it wasn’t enough for her safety. She wants her employer to do more.
“We was not taught how to defend ourselves on the street. We were taught how to defend ourselves from dogs,” she added. “I also want them to be more sincere about our feelings. No one called me to ask me how I’m doing. No one cared to see my bruises, to know that I’m traumatized. They just don’t care.”
Atlanta Black Star reached out to USPS for comment.
