Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg is under pressure this week over his handling of the case as he prepares to present evidence to a grand jury against a group of men accused of assaulting a police officer in Times Square. exposed.
A total of seven men were arrested after the January 27 assault, which left a police officer and a lieutenant with minor injuries. All were immigrants, law enforcement officials said.
The official said prosecutors decided not to ask a judge for bail for most of the men, and four of them fled the city after being released last week.
Mr. Bragg soon became the subject of unusual public criticism from the police. In response, he expressed concern that not all perpetrators may have been accurately identified.
In Saturday's announcement that a grand jury would hear evidence in the case, he described normal procedure in the criminal justice system. However, by announcing the move in a joint statement with the police chief, Mr Bragg sought to convey the seriousness of his office's approach to the case and to show that it is cooperating with police. It seemed like that.
John Chell, the department's chief of patrol, last week slammed prosecutors' decision not to charge bail for the men charged in the attack, saying, “They should sit Rikers on bond right now.'' ” he said. He added: “Do you want to know why our police officers are being assaulted?” There are no results. ”
According to police sources, the men were immigrants who had been in the country for less than a year and had been living in a shelter.After their arraignment, the four fled the city using bus tickets purchased with the help of a church group. The official was not authorized to publicly discuss the incident and spoke on condition of anonymity.
Mr Bragg, a Democrat, last week defended his decision not to seek bail for most of the men in what he called a “despicable” attack, saying: “We make decisions based on the evidence before us at the time. “There is,” he added. He said his office “has not seen any evidence in this fugitive incident” but is “investigating the allegations.”
Bragg emphasized the phrase “the right person,” adding that proper identification is needed to “ensure convictions, ensure accountability, and send the right people to prison.” His office has already declined to prosecute one of the men initially arrested, citing a lack of evidence.
“It is clear from the video and other evidence that some of the most culpable individuals have yet to be identified or arrested,” Mr Bragg said in a joint statement with Police Commissioner Edward Caban.
Caban added, “We will continue to work tirelessly with the Manhattan District Attorney's Office to identify and arrest all individuals who participated in this event.”
The outcry over the incident and Bragg's response touches on several high-profile issues. They included criticism of New York's bail reform law, which prohibits judges from setting bail for most nonviolent crimes, and criticism of the roughly 70,000 immigrants held in city shelters. This includes criticism that many New Yorkers are becoming less patient with paying for their care.
Most of the men arrested in the case were charged with serious assault, a crime that is still subject to bail under changes to New York bail law. Nevertheless, they were released without bail.
The incendiary incident echoes past episodes in which Bragg has been less proactive in politically charged cases and policy decisions, including a 2022 case in which a store clerk who killed an attacker was initially charged with murder. It reminded me of. In these cases, he faces backlash from both Democrats and Republicans, and he often responds long after the criticism begins.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (Democratic) said at a press conference Wednesday that she “hopes that the judges and prosecutors will do the right thing” regarding the Times Square incident. On Thursday, she said of immigrants found responsible for the assaults: “Get them all and send them back.”
Police said the attack occurred at 8:30 p.m. on Jan. 27 as officers and lieutenants attempted to disperse a disorderly group outside an immigrant shelter in the Candler Building on 42nd Street near 7th Avenue. .
The police announced that surveillance video The footage shows a police officer talking to several men. You will see the entire party leaving. The video then cuts to the lieutenant and one of the officers attempting to arrest a man wearing a yellow jacket and sweatshirt.
Soon, police arrive on the ground with a man in yellow. As they struggled, several other men punched, kicked and shoved the officers, who suffered minor injuries and were treated at the scene.
Four men were arrested that night and charged with assaulting a police officer and gang assault. A fifth person was arrested on Monday and charged with attempted assault on a police officer. Two more people were arrested Wednesday and charged with felony assault and robbery, including Yohenry Brito, 24, identified as a man in yellow who resisted arrest. was.
Brito was the only man prosecutors asked to be released on bail, and he was ordered held at Rikers Island on $15,000 bail. Prosecutors said in court documents that Brito pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct in September and had two open warrants for his arrest.
The man law enforcement officials said fled the city was Yeoman Rebellon, 24. Darwin Andres Gomez-Izquiel, 19 years old. Wilson Juarez, 21 years old. and Kelvin Servita Arrocha (19). Officials say they are all living in immigrant shelters.
On Sunday, former President Donald J. Trump baselessly cited the attack as evidence that Latin American governments are selective about the criminals they send to the United States. Most of the men charged in the attack are from Venezuela.
The influx of immigrants, more than 170,000 of whom have entered the city since early 2022, appears to have had little impact on crime or public safety. Last year, the city saw a significant drop in most violent crimes, including homicides. However, the number of felony assaults increased by 6% from 2022, and the number of assaults on police officers increased by nearly 20% to 2,235.
