Leftist Policies to Blame for NYC Activist Ryan Carson’s Murder, Says Former NYPD Police Chief

A still image from the New York Police Department's crime stats briefing on Oct. 4, 2023, shows Ryan Carson, the suspect accused of fatally stabbing Ryan Carson in N.Y.C. on Oct. 2, 2023. Courtesy of NYPD

The violent murder of a well-known New York City activist is the result of progressive policies that have led to an erosion of law and order that has left residents of the nation’s largest city at the mercy of criminals, according to its former police chief.

Former New York Police Commissioner Bernard Kerik, who joined the New York Police Department (NYPD) in 1986 and served in the role as the city’s top cop from 2000 to 2001, told The Epoch Times the current administration has all the tools necessary to put an end to the carnage, but refuses to do what is needed.

“What we are experiencing in terms of the crime in New York City is absolute insanity and it could be easily stopped,” said Mr. Kerik. “The current mayor worked for me. He was under my command as we took a city that had the highest murder rate in the country and transformed it into the safest biggest city in America, so he knows exactly what we did to reduce crime and he’s simply choosing not to do it.”

“I strongly believe that what is happening is intentional. I have no other explanation.”

The most recent high profile incident of violence came on Oct. 2, when Ryan Carson, a longtime campaign organizer for the New York Public Interest Research Group, was with his girlfriend, walking back to her home after attending a wedding, when the couple was approached by a man who was acting erratically and knocking over scooters, according to surveillance video obtained by the New York Post. Police would later reveal that the suspect charged in the death, 18-year-old Brian Dowling, had a violent outburst at his girlfriend’s apartment only two months prior and had ongoing mental health issues.

The tragedy is part of an escalating surge in violent crime in the city. Increasing numbers of New Yorkers, including police, are being assaulted, beaten, stabbed and punched. From Jan. 1 to March 31, citywide, 1,251 on- and off-duty police were hurt by people using physical force against them, compared to 949 in the first quarter of 2022, according to newly released NYPD crime statistics.

“Obviously, our enforcement is way up and, unfortunately, assaults on our police officers are up,” NYPD Commissioner Edward Caban said in a statement.

Mr. Kerik says that while the victim of the most recent tragedy may appear random, the circumstances that led to the surge in the city’s crime rates are the natural consequences of liberal policing policies. Mr. Kerik cites bail laws that have resulted in setting countless criminals back out on the street, the refusal to pass reforms so the city can get the dangerously mentally ill into treatment, and judges not being allowed to consider a suspect’s past offenses when rendering judgements, as all having contributed to a spike in violence.

New York County District Attorney Alvin Bragg is also to blame, according to Mr. Kerik.

“The DA is failing to prosecute and address violent crime as aggressively as he could and instead seems to have been devoting his time and resources to the Trump prosecution,” said Mr. Kerik. “It is an absolute outrage.”

Further contributing to the rise in crime has been New York City’s self-designation as a “sanctuary city,” according to Mr. Kerik. Sanctuary jurisdictions limit or outright refuse to cooperate with federal immigration enforcement efforts. City officials claim an estimated influx of 100,000 illegal immigrants has strained the city’s resources and services.

The city has long claimed a legal obligation to provide housing for every resident under the “right to shelter” law, which was first established in 1981. The rule came into existence after advocates for the homeless claimed the right to shelter in a lawsuit. The city agreed with the homeless advocates, signing a “consent decree,” which pledged to provide shelter to anyone suffering “physical, mental, or social dysfunction.”

On Thursday New York City Mayor Eric Adams warned reporters in Mexico that the city was out of room and resources.

“We are neighbors, we are familiar,” and illegal immigrants “are our future and we cannot lose one of them,” he said, The Associated Press reported.

However, he added, “There is no more room in New York. Our hearts are endless, but our resources are not. We don’t want to put people in congregate shelters. We don’t want people to think they will be employed.”

Mr. Kerik believes the change in attitude from Mr. Adams “is too little, too late.”

“Only recently are these blue city politicians admitting that the illegals posed a substantial problem in terms of crime,” said Mr. Kerik. “Anytime you have illegals coming in unvetted and unmonitored it poses a pretty substantial security risk, and of course they knew that.”

“Even in incidents where the illegal immigrants come and don’t commit crimes, it is still a tremendous strain on resources that could be going to keeping our streets safe.”

Mr. Kerik said that the city can still be saved, but only if political leaders can find the courage to change policy.

“They aren’t concerned with security and safety, they are concerned about their next election,” said Mr. Kerik. “The irony of it is, if they don’t fix the crime, then this next election will be their last election.”