What Two NYC Cases Tell Us About Criminal Justice

Two high-profile New York City criminal cases highlight why crime concerns are about more than just data showing the numbers going up or down. (Gothamist)

Case 1: At a press conference on Monday, New York City Mayor Eric Adams said a stabbing spree in Manhattan earlier that day was “a clear example of a criminal justice system and mental health system that continues to fail New Yorkers.”

• 51-year-old Ramon Rivera’s alleged rampage spanned twenty blocks, lasted more than two hours and left three people dead.

• Rivera has been arrested nine times in the past year in New York and New Jersey and reportedly has a history of mental distress.

Case 2: Daniel Penny, a Marine veteran, is accused of second-degree manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide for putting Jordan Neely, a homeless man, in a fatal chokehold following Neely’s subway outburst in May 2023.

• A witness to the incident told 911 operators that Neely was “trying to attack everybody” before Penny intervened.

• During the ongoing trial, witness Moriela Sanchez testified she felt relieved when Penny restrained Neely, but expressed concern that the chokehold seemed too tight.

• Another witness, Caedryn Schrunk, recalled feeling she might die during Neely's threatening rant and was grateful for Penny's intervention.

Zoom out: In recent years, there’s been a growing sense among many urbanites that disruptive incidents involving the homeless and mentally ill are on the upswing — and there is some data to back up the sentiment.

• In a survey of over 2,400 senior law enforcement officials, 84% reported an increase in mental health-related calls, and 63% said their departments now spend more time on these calls than in the past.

• Homelessness surged 12% last year, to its highest reported level, according to federal officials.

• These and other indicators of rising disorder in cities — increases in unsanitary conditions, shoplifting, fare evasion and drug use — may have played a role in urban counties shifting toward Donald Trump by 10 points in the 2024 election.

The vibes: The share of Americans who feel the criminal justice system is too lax has risen sharply since 2020.

Bubba’s Two Cents

There’s nothing humane about the dysfunction erupting across too many U.S. cities. Political blogger Noah Smith’s recent warning to his fellow big-city liberals is timely: "Anarchy is not a substitute for welfare."

Smith: “Many progressives believe that any actions to curb urban disorder — restrictions on sidewalk tents, making people pay for public transit, arresting people for nonviolent crime, and so on — represent the exclusion of marginalized people from public life. In the absence of a full-service cradle-to-grave welfare state, progressives think they can redistribute urban utility from the rich to the poor by basically letting anyone do anything they want.”