The bodega clerk from New York City who was charged with murder, then had the charges dropped, after a gut-wrenching video of him having to stab an attacker in self-defense while he worked behind the checkout counter at a NYC bodega, is now suing DA Alvin Bragg for racial discrimination.
The furious New Yorker behind the suit is Jose Alba, the former bodega worker who was viciously attacked while working behind the counter on July 1, 2022, by Austin Simon, 35, and his girlfriend, Tina Lee, after calling out theft. He alleges that DA Bragg and the NYPD detectives wrongfully arrested and prosecuted him because of DA Bragg’s racial equity policies.
The complaint, making that accusation, states, “New York County District Attorney Alvin Bragg and/or his subordinates, following Bragg’s policy to achieve ‘racial equity’ in the Manhattan criminal justice system, charged Plaintiff with murder in the second degree and asked for high bail at Plaintiff’s arraignment.”
The complaint also notes that the two attackers faced no legal consequences despite instigating the incident, but Mr. Alba, who was just trying to get through the work day, had the book thrown at him for defending himself. It notes, “Despite the fact that Simon and Lee were the initial aggressors, it was Plaintiff who was arrested, incarcerated, and wrongfully prosecuted.”
It continues, “While in theory, Bragg’s ‘racial equity’ policies are a well-intentioned attempt by him to implement even-handed justice, the means and methods employed by Bragg have instead had an opposite effect and resulted in discrimination against certain defendants based on race.”
The complaint also states that the public was outraged by the story, noting, “After the video of Simon and Lee’s attack on Plaintiff was shown by the news media, and Plaintiff’s arrest, prosecution and incarceration at Rikers Island Correctional Facility became a national story, there was widespread outrage against Bragg and his office for charging a law-abiding, older working man for lawfully defending himself during the crime wave in New York City, caused in part by the massive resignations of New York City Police Officers, and legislation and policies that frustrate the ability for law enforcement to combat crime.”
Further, the complaint notes that DA Bragg responded to that outrage by getting defensive as Mr. Alba had to suffer on Rikers Island for defending himself. In its words, “Defensively, Bragg responded that he was still investigating the incident, while Plaintiff, who could not pay the high bail for murder in the second degree, suffered at Rikers Island, unaware whether he was facing a long prison sentence for lawful self-defense.“
DA Bragg, for his part, has insisted that his “racial equity” approach to the job should mean that thievery should not be prosecuted because it is a “crime of poverty.” He said, “I grew up with friends disappearing over charges like that (theft) and even if there is an alternative [to incarceration, such as diversion programs, there is a] consequence of disruption for the family. We need to asking, ‘Does something make us safer?’ And prosecuting a young person, even if it doesn’t end in incarceration [such as in diversion programs], in my view does not make us safer. I think we need to move away from what I would call a crime of poverty.”
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