Teen set free despite video of him attacking cops explains why NYC crime is out of control
Wonder why city subways and streets remain dangerous? Look no further than at the 16-year-old who punched and choked a cop yet was freed just hours after his arrest Saturday.
Two officers stopped the teen after he allegedly jumped a turnstile, prompting him to become “verbally aggressive,” officials say. When the officers went to arrest him, he started punching and choking an officer, igniting a brawl caught on video. Cops eventually hauled him in, but by Sunday he was back on the streets.
Read that closely: The video clearly shows the kid aggressively attacking a police officer.
And this wasn’t even his first brush with the law: The youngster was nabbed in April for carrying a loaded gun, and only days ago for violent felony robbery — yet released both times.
In case he hadn’t got the message that his actions carry no consequences, he was set free once again. The Manhattan District Attorney’s office said the case was sent to Family Court because of his age; there, of course, budding young criminals are routinely “punished” with juice and cookies and sent on their way. It’s pure insanity.
“Catch, release, repeat,” railed Mayor Eric Adams on Tuesday. And “we’re not talking about someone [who] steals an apple” but who “repeatedly” uses violence.
Police-union boss Pat Lynch fumed that criminals know they can “choke a cop and be back out in hours.” Officers put their lives on the line but are “abandoned by a justice system that won’t back us up.”
Lynch is referring to “reforms” like the no-bail law and Raise the Age, the latter of which makes it impossible to try perps under 18 in Criminal Court for most crimes, among other problems.
Progressives think these laws give kids a second chance; in fact, they give out endless chances — give up on any hope of getting young offenders onto the right track.
Crime in New York now carries no real consequences, even if you’re caught — at least, not before someone ends up dead. Which is why homicides, shootings and all other major crime have soared.
Adams is now demanding lawmakers return to Albany for a special legislative session to fix the disastrous criminal-justice laws, just as they did “with the [recent Supreme Court] ruling on right to carry.” Yet Gov. Kathy Hochul and legislative leaders dismiss that out of hand.
By contrast, Rep. Lee Zeldin promises he’ll push Albany to fix the laws on Day 1 if he’s elected governor. That may well be the only way Adams — and New York — will make any headway on crime.