Man accused of punching NYC woman freed by judge, allegedly attacks 85-year-old next day

A woman punched in Manhattan says her attacker was freed and allegedly hit an 85-year-old man the next day.

A 28-year-old woman says she was left shocked after a man who allegedly punched her on a Manhattan street was released by a judge. The same man allegedly attacked an 85-year-old man the next day. She has now questioned the justice system, saying she no longer feels safe in her own neighborhood.

What happened on Fulton Street

A woman says the man who punched her in lower Manhattan was freed and allegedly attacked again. (Unsplash/ representational)

According to the woman, a 28-year-old who works in finance, she was punched near Fulton Street and Water Street in lower Manhattan in September.

“This is the most insane story ever,” she told The Post. “I’m walking and I’m on my phone and then all of a sudden I hear this guy shout ‘Watch out!’”

She looked up and saw the man, who was later identified as Christopher Tarrant, about to punch her in the face. She dodged, but his fist hit her shoulder, she said.

She called the police and followed him, she told The Post. She said she saw him throw a glass bottle at an older woman and punch another woman near the South Street Seaport. Tarrant attacked two other women within five minutes before he was arrested.

Police arrested Tarrant, who is 24. He was charged only with misdemeanor assault for allegedly hitting her, the woman said. The two other women did not stay to file complaints.

An NYPD spokesman said police officers cannot take a crime complaint without a victim.

According to court records, a Manhattan judge released Tarrant the next day. The misdemeanor charge was not eligible for bail under the 2019 reform laws.

A day later, Tarrant allegedly attacked an elderly man in Hell’s Kitchen, as per the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office. It says he kicked the man in the legs until he fell, then punched him twice in the face. This time he was charged with felony assault because the victim was over 65.

Prosecutors asked for $25,000 cash bail or $50,000 bond. But Criminal Court Judge Jeffrey Gershuny freed him on supervised release.

The judge’s past and what experts say

As per The Post, Gershuny was appointed by then-Mayor Bill de Blasio in 2019. He has been soft on crime in the past.

He freed “Burberry Bandit” Cornell Neilly last year. Neilly, 35, had 34 prior arrests for bank robbery. He was also on parole when he allegedly robbed five banks between August 16 and September 13. Prosecutors had asked for $50,000 cash bail or $150,000 bond, but Gershuny let him go on supervised release.

Gershuny was also censured last year for pulling out his firearm in a Brooklyn courtroom. It happened during a “little experiment” to see whether a cop could detect a gun.

Retired NYPD Detective Michael Alcazar, an adjunct professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, said police could have looked into the other assaults without the victims.

“Non-cooperative victims should not prevent police from charging the perp with additional charges because it was definitely a pattern asault crime,” Alcazar said. “They could have and should have charged multiple assaults based on this pattern.”

He also blamed the judge. “Dangerousness is the missing variable, and when judges ignore it the public pays the price,” Alcazar said. “Judges should be held more accountable to make sure they too are doing their due diligence.”

NYPD data shows that felony assault cases in the 1st Precinct, which covers Soho, Tribeca and Wall Street, have increased by 14%. There have been 151 cases so far this year, compared with 133 during the same period last year.

The woman now feels on alert when she walks in the area where she lives and works. “We walk around and we expect to not feel like we’re in danger all the time whether it’s at night or during the day,” she said. “And when the people hired to protect us don’t really step into the full role of their responsibilities it’s really scary.”