NYC NOW - May 5, 2023: Midday News

Episode Date: May 5, 2023

A Brooklyn man was arrested for firing a long gun from a rooftop in Sheepshead Bay; no injuries reported. MTA to increase weekend subway services on various lines starting July. And finally, WNYC's Michael Hill and public safety reporter Matt Katz discuss the tragic choke-hold death of Jordan Neely on the F train, examining the NYPD and city's response to the incident.

Welcome to NYC now. Your source for local news in and around New York City from WNYC. It's Friday, May 5th. Here's the midday news from Michael Hill. Police say they've arrested a man in Brooklyn suspected of firing a long gun from a rooftop on Bedford Avenue and Chiefshead Bay. Officers said they saw the man climb back into the house using the fire escape. No reports of injuries there. It's good news for riders waiting on Hot Subway platforms this summer.

The MTA plans to run more frequent service on the G, J, and M lines on weekends. Starting in July, riders can expect trains on the lines every 8 to 9 minutes instead of the current 10 or 11 minutes. And in August, the MTA says weekend trains on the 1 and 6 lines will run every 6 minutes. And officials say they'll boost midday service on the CNN and R lines as well. Well, the MTA plans other service increases in December and next July. The change is part of an agreement in the state budget. The MTA says it will cost $35 million to run the extra service. Take a look now at your forecast.

60 with clouds right now. What a weekend? Partly sunny and 62 to kick it off with cool nights. And then tomorrow, sunny and 70. Sunday, mostly sunny and 74. And then on Mondays, we'll begin a new work week, mostly sunny and 76. It's WNIC. The killing of a man on a subway at the hands of a fellow passenger is raising strong feelings across the city, though for a variety of reasons.

30-year-old Jordan nearly was on an F train on Monday, having what a witness described as a mental health crisis, when another passenger put him in a chokehold, he died shortly after. The incident brings up a lot of persistent issues for the city, from the lack of support for those. experiencing homelessness and mental health challenges to the man who subdued Neely has so far not faced criminal charges. WNIC reported Matt Katz joins us now to talk through what we know right now. We've been reporting all week on this case, Matt, and the potentially triggering video showing Neely

being put in a chokehold for several minutes on the floor of the train and dying shortly thereafter at the hospital. What's the latest from law enforcement on this map? As of this morning, Michael, no charges have had. been filed against the man who put Neely in a chokehold. We know that the NYPD and Manhattan District Attorney's Office are continuing to investigate, and there's growing political pressure for action. You have Congresswoman Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez calling this a public murder. State Senator Julius Salazar told me it's a lynching. And then after Governor Kathy Hokel was

criticized for relatively tepid remarks about the case on Wednesday, she came out yesterday and she said she was glad that Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg is investigating because there have to be consequences for what she described as an extreme response from this writer. The mayor, though, Eric Adams has so far refused to criticize the actions of the man who put Neely in this deadly chokehold. District attorney, the police department, they're doing their investigations, and I'm going to respect that. There are many layers to this. So let them, let the process follow his court. That mild response has drawn criticism from other elected officials.

And the other piece of this, of course, is such strong, that's inspiring such strong passions here, is that the man is young and white and that he was initially questioned by police and then released. And Neely, the individual who was killed, he was a 30-year-old black man. Matt, what led this passenger on the train to take what Hockel describes as an example? string response and subdued Neely. We know from an eyewitness who shot the video of this incident that Neely was apparently acting erratically. It sounded like something that those of us who ride the subway see quite often.

Neely said he was hungry and thirsty and ready to die and he threw his jacket on the ground. My colleague Samantha Max interviewed two witnesses who saw what happened just after that. They were in an adjacent train car and when the train stopped at the Broadway Lafayette station because of this incident. incident, these men saw a crowd of people watching as this white man held a black man on the floor of the other train car. This is James King's. He was totally subdued and he wasn't, it wasn't like he was trying to fight back or anything. He was just glimped. King says he wishes he could have done

something to save Neely. King himself has been homeless most of his life and he understands that Neely's behavior on the train and what led up to this might not have been appropriate, but still. The man had no right to get onto the train and demand anything from anyone, but that doesn't mean that he should be murdered. He shouldn't have lost his life for that, you know? At the most, maybe a night in jail. Police arrived about six minutes after the train, into that station. That's according to Mayor Adams, and then Neely was taken to the hospital where he

died. Matt, what do we know about the man who put Neely in that chokehold? At the moment, we know little about him because the police have not confirmed his name, and so we don't know what his motive may have been or why he felt taking this action was necessary. But because there's this four-minute video showing the killing that's been circulating, what's happening as the story has become the center of this larger national culture war despite a lack of detail. So was this man a bloodthirsty, racist, vigilante? Or was he a hero who was protecting innocent commuters going about their day? Does this indicate our government's systemic failures and providing shelter and food to the poor? Or does it show the failure of our government

to provide enough law and order so people don't take matters into their own hands like this? Those conversations, those debates on media and social media have already gotten quite ugly. Raging debates, Matt. What have you learned about the man who died, Jordan Neely? We know that he was a street performer who had long struggled with mental illness when he was just 14. His mother was killed by a domestic partner strangled tragically enough and Neely testified at that murder trial. My colleague David Brand has a profile of him up on Gothamus now, and he described Neely as a moonwalking Michael Jackson impersonator who danced on the subways and platforms since at least 2009. Homeless outreach workers say he used to hang out at the Oculus at the World Trade Center and the sidewalks around the Bowery.

He was known to have shared the money he made dancing with kids he knew from foster care, but he was also reportedly arrested multiple times in recent years. and people have pointed to that his criminal history as possible justification for his killing. And of course, many other New Yorkers are disgusted by that very notion. I have been speaking with WNYC reporter Matt Katz. You can read all the latest at gothmas.com. Matt, thank you.

Thanks, Michael. Thanks for listening. This is NYC now from WNYC. Be sure to catch us every weekday, three times a day, for your top news headlines and occasional deep-dice. and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.

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