In New York City, criminal activity within the subway system has seen a slight decrease, however, this statistic rings hollow for those who’ve found themselves victims of the habitual offenders that still run rampant underground. The angst is attributed to just 63 repeat offenders who are responsible for over 5,000 arrests collectively, but shockingly, only five among them are currently incarcerated. These individuals commit a diverse range of offenses, ranging from assault and robbery to minor annoyances like fare evasion, however, the state’s criminal justice reforms prevent judges from detaining them with bail. Despite a decrease in overall subway crime, these habitual offenders continue to be the leading cause of disturbances in the transit system.
‘The decrease in subway crime isn’t equivalent to a decrease in fear or disorder, as the same culprits keep inciting chaos,’ reported a troubled law enforcement source. ‘Given the leniency on bail and the deficient prosecutions, our efforts aren’t generating the desired results.’ The latest statistics provided by the NYPD indicate a 3.8% decrease in transit infractions over the initial eight months of the year, and a nearly 6% lull over the last couple of years due to concerted law enforcement strategies and police placement.
These improvements, however, can’t be traced back to the state’s 2019 criminal justice reforms. These reforms protect judges from applying bail to most crimes, and specifically all non-violent crimes. Consequently, habitual criminals arrested for any crime aside from violent felonies typically receive lenient punishment and are released while awaiting court proceedings. This intervention, or lack thereof, allows for continued criminal conduct.
Numerous transit system perpetrators illustrate the consequences of these issues. One 39-year-old man, who has been arrested 198 times in total, has a distressingly extensive record. He has been implicated in disturbing the MetroCard dispensers 190 times, 36 of them occurring this year. Another habitual offender, a 28-year-old man, had been arrested an alarming total of 149 times, 18 of those being within the past few months for alleged larceny and deception, amongst other offenses.
Included in the list of serial offenders is a 53-year-old man who bears 72 arrests for alleged major theft, trespassing, and controlled substance possession. His arrests increased even while on probation for owning stolen property, with a total of six arrests since May. Sex-related infractions such as public lasciviousness and non-consensual contact have also been counted among the array of offenses committed by this group of offenders.
For instance, a 26-year-old male offender has accumulated 29 arrests overall, 13 of them involving lewd acts. These crimes involve inappropriate conduct towards female commuters and invasions of their personal space. A similarly disconcerting case involves a 38-year-old man who has a total of 48 arrests to his name, with offenses ranging from alleged robbery and public indecency to theft.
A 32-year-old man, with 18 arrests under his importance, adds to the troubling tally of habitual offenders. Among his varied crimes, he has been accused of non-consensual contact and robbery, including incidents involving physical aggression towards women in order to rob them of their phones. While he was previously on probation for a robbery conviction, he has again been arrested since then.
Surprisingly, only one among these six mentioned chronic offenders, the 26-year-old male, is currently in custody. The remainder are at liberty, free to traverse the city streets and transit system. The 26-year-old male was finally detained in February without bail due to a charge of touching a minor non-consensually.
The process of prosecuting these offenders has involved a myriad of attorneys, primarily publicly funded defense lawyers, over time. Some of the charges tabled against them haven’t been severe enough to warrant a counsel. Even then, with the majority of the repeated offenders still not detained, the issues posed by this group of habitual offenders remain a significant concern for the city and its commuters.
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