The story of a New York City bodega employee charged with murder to protect himself from attack is a regrettable sign of the times of the Big Apple. Progressive District Attorney Alvin Bragg regularly offers leniency to criminals, but he throws the book at the bodega clerk.
Press reports said the July 1 controversy began when a woman’s payment card was declined because she tried to buy a bag of chips. Video Shows her yelling at bodega worker Jose Alba that her boyfriend is “just gonna come down here and f—you up.” Boyfriend, 35-year-old Austin Simon, entered the bodega, and security-camera footage Shows that he is facing Mr. Alba and pushing and holding her.
Mr Alba allegedly stabbed Simon to death. Mr Alba’s son told the New York Post that “he was in fear for his life at the time.” The Post describes Simon as “a career criminal on parole for assaulting a police officer”.
Mr. Alba was waiting for the police to arrive in Bodega. Mr Bragg’s office charged him with second-degree murder and initially requested $250,000 in bail. This was reduced to $50,000 after public outcry. Mr Alba has been released from New York’s infamous Rikers Island prison with an ankle bracelet after serving a 10% sentence. Three unidentified beneficiaries guaranteed the remainder.
Mr. Alba has not filed a petition. Harlem’s Neighborhood Defender Service, representing him, said in a statement that “in this case the video speaks for itself: Mr Alba was just doing his job when he was aggressively attacked by a much younger and older man.” surrounded by.” The group says Mr. Alba is 61 years old, but the New York State Unified Court System lists his year of birth as 1970.
Affiliate Friday that “we are continuing to review the evidence and the investigation is ongoing.” But a second-degree murder charge, which typically carries a prison sentence of 15 to 25 years in New York, appears to have made a stern attempt to set an example for others, who will be of their own accord as crime rises in the city. Can try to defend.
According to police data, there was a 53% increase in homicides in New York in 2021 and a 10% increase in felonies compared to 2019. Bodegas are prime targets.
In May a robber hit a 54-year-old Staten Island bodega worker in the head with a glass bottle and beat him until he turned black. In January, attackers attacked two employees in a Bronx bodega, leaving one in critical condition; According to the New York Post, one worker was stabbed, while the other was shot with a pistol. That month a man hoisted a meat cleaver at a Queens bodega worker who tried to stop him from stealing beer. There are many more cases.
Alba’s story follows when chaos becomes widespread, criminals hope for impunity, and innocent people believe the police don’t arrive in time to help. People start defending themselves in any way they can, because they have a right to do so, often with tragic consequences.
Wonder Land: Democrats always seem to be on the edge of pushing politics into a state of civil unrest. Images: Getty Images / Boston Globe Composite: Mark Kelly
opinion | When public disorder reigns
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg
photo:
Eduardo Munoz/Reuters
The story of a New York City bodega employee charged with murder to protect himself from attack is a regrettable sign of the times of the Big Apple. Progressive District Attorney Alvin Bragg regularly offers leniency to criminals, but he throws the book at the bodega clerk.
Press reports said the July 1 controversy began when a woman’s payment card was declined because she tried to buy a bag of chips. Video Shows her yelling at bodega worker Jose Alba that her boyfriend is “just gonna come down here and f—you up.” Boyfriend, 35-year-old Austin Simon, entered the bodega, and security-camera footage Shows that he is facing Mr. Alba and pushing and holding her.
Mr Alba allegedly stabbed Simon to death. Mr Alba’s son told the New York Post that “he was in fear for his life at the time.” The Post describes Simon as “a career criminal on parole for assaulting a police officer”.
Mr. Alba was waiting for the police to arrive in Bodega. Mr Bragg’s office charged him with second-degree murder and initially requested $250,000 in bail. This was reduced to $50,000 after public outcry. Mr Alba has been released from New York’s infamous Rikers Island prison with an ankle bracelet after serving a 10% sentence. Three unidentified beneficiaries guaranteed the remainder.
Mr. Alba has not filed a petition. Harlem’s Neighborhood Defender Service, representing him, said in a statement that “in this case the video speaks for itself: Mr Alba was just doing his job when he was aggressively attacked by a much younger and older man.” surrounded by.” The group says Mr. Alba is 61 years old, but the New York State Unified Court System lists his year of birth as 1970.
A spokesman for Mr Bragg told the local
CBS
Affiliate Friday that “we are continuing to review the evidence and the investigation is ongoing.” But a second-degree murder charge, which typically carries a prison sentence of 15 to 25 years in New York, appears to have made a stern attempt to set an example for others, who will be of their own accord as crime rises in the city. Can try to defend.
According to police data, there was a 53% increase in homicides in New York in 2021 and a 10% increase in felonies compared to 2019. Bodegas are prime targets.
In May a robber hit a 54-year-old Staten Island bodega worker in the head with a glass bottle and beat him until he turned black. In January, attackers attacked two employees in a Bronx bodega, leaving one in critical condition; According to the New York Post, one worker was stabbed, while the other was shot with a pistol. That month a man hoisted a meat cleaver at a Queens bodega worker who tried to stop him from stealing beer. There are many more cases.
Alba’s story follows when chaos becomes widespread, criminals hope for impunity, and innocent people believe the police don’t arrive in time to help. People start defending themselves in any way they can, because they have a right to do so, often with tragic consequences.
Wonder Land: Democrats always seem to be on the edge of pushing politics into a state of civil unrest. Images: Getty Images / Boston Globe Composite: Mark Kelly
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