Matt Haberkorn, left, after being hit with a glass clutch by Jacqueline Kent Cooke, right. Image by Facebook/Forward Montage

(JTA) — A New York millionaire socialite pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct in a case stemming from a New Year’s Eve incident in which she allegedly hit a lawyer with a glass handbag and made an anti-Semitic remark.

Jacqueline Kent Cooke, daughter of the late billionaire Jack Kent Cooke, who owned the NFL’s Washington Redskins and other pro sports franchises, issued her plea and was sentenced Tuesday in Manhattan Criminal Court to three days of community service.

Cooke, 29, originally was charged with second-degree assault for hitting attorney Matthew Haberkorn with the purse. Disorderly conduct is considered a violation, not a crime, and so Cooke will have no criminal record.

Antisemitism Notebook

Your weekly guide through the news and the noise of how rising antisemitism and disputes over how to address it are shaping American Jewish life.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

According to the New York Daily News, Haberkorn, 52, of the San Francisco area, his mother, wife and four daughters were collecting their outdoor gear from a coat check after eating at a high-end Manhattan restaurant when Cooke allegedly told him, “Hurry up, Jew. I got places to be.”

Cooke continues to dispute the claim, insisting she said, “Excuse me, I have to get through.” Haberkorn’s wife, Linda Thomas, who according to the Daily News is not Jewish, replied: “We all got places to be. You know what? I take total offense at that. You’re small-minded.”

Cooke’s boyfriend got involved, allegedly saying “Happy bat mitzvah, girls,” the Daily News reported.

When Haberkorn confronted Cooke outside over her alleged comments, she reportedly hit him over the head with her glass purse, a Lulu Guinness Chloe Mirrored Perspex Box Clutch that sells for $300, and pulled him to the ground. He sustained a large cut on his head. One of Haberkorn’s daughters shot video of the incident outside the restaurant on her cellphone.

In February, Cooke told the Manhattan Criminal Court that she sustained serious injuries in the incident that she said required the surgical insertion of a titanium implant into her right ring finger.

EDITOR’S NOTE: The original version of this story incorrectly stated that Jacqueline Kent Cooke admitted to hitting a lawyer with a glass handbag and making an anti-Semitic remark. In fact, she pleaded guilty to a disorderly conduct violation that did not directly address either of those allegations. Cooke says any action she took was in self defense and denies making any anti-Semitic remark.

A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

The coming year promises to be filled with more complex and historic developments. We are entering an era where independent, fact-based Jewish journalism will be more important than ever. We need to be ready for whatever 2025 will bring, and with your help, we can be.

We’ve set a goal to raise $260,000 by December 31. That’s an ambitious goal, but one that will give us the resources we need to invest in the high quality news, opinion, analysis and cultural coverage that isn’t available anywhere else.

If you feel inspired to make an impact, now is the time to give something back. Join us as a member at your most generous level.

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

With your support, we’ll be ready for whatever 2025 brings.

$36 $500

$120 $180 Other amount