In yet another twist of the NYPD’s effed up force, an emotionally disturbed man is facing charges for bullets meant for him that wounded bystanders instead. According The New York Times, and emotionally disturbed man was shot at by police as he was staggering around traffic near Times Square but the bullets wounded two bystanders.
Today, the man, Glenn Broadnax, 35, faces charges for assault because of those bullets.
The situated escalated back in September when Broadnax created drew a crowd by dodging in and out of traffic. Officers say the man reached into his pants pocket and they thought it was a gun, so they opened fire. Two nearby women were struck but Broadnax, at 250 lbs was brought down with a taser.
Via NYT:
Initially Mr. Broadnax was arrested on misdemeanor charges of menacing, drug possession and resisting arrest. But the Manhattan district attorney’s office persuaded a grand jury to charge Mr. Broadnax with assault, a felony carrying a maximum sentence of 25 years. Specifically, the nine-count indictment unsealed on Wednesday said Mr. Broadnax “recklessly engaged in conduct which created a grave risk of death.”
“The defendant is the one that created the situation that injured innocent bystanders,” said an assistant district attorney, Shannon Lucey.
Related Coverage
The two police officers, who have not been identified, have been placed on administrative duty and their actions are still under investigation by the district attorney’s office, law enforcement officials said. They also face an internal Police Department inquiry.
Mr. Broadnax’s lawyer, Rigodis Appling, said Mr. Broadnax suffered from anxiety and depression and had been disoriented and scared when the police shot at him. He was reaching for his wallet, not a gun, she said. “Mr. Broadnax never imagined his behavior would ever cause the police to shoot at him,” she said.
After his arrest, Mr. Broadnax was taken to Bellevue Hospital Center, where he told a detective that “he was talking to dead relatives in his head and that he tried throwing himself in front of cars to kill himself,” according to a court document released on Wednesday.
A judge ordered a mental evaluation, and a psychiatrist later found Mr. Broadnax competent to stand trial, Ms. Appling said.
On Wednesday, Justice Gregory Carro set bail at $100,000 bond or $50,000 cash.
A lawyer for one of the wounded women says the D.A. should be pursuing charges against the officers who fired their weapons near a crowd, not Broadnax.
Well…duh! This is messed up. Broadnax wasn’t right in the situation but hopefully his family counter sues and wins.
