New York DA who is prosecuting Trump, soft on crime admits he fears for his family while riding city subways

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg has made a name for himself overseeing an office that has been widely criticized for being too soft on criminals, often releasing repeat offenders who then go on to terrorize the town yet again. 

With an increasing number of New York City residents expressing concern over their safety, the progressive DA has admitted that things have gotten to a point where he, too, is worried about crime in the city, especially on the subway, saying the thought of a family member riding the train makes him sick to his stomach.


 

"I know the statistics that transit crime is down," Bragg said during a recent interview with Fox5 NY, "but when one of my family members gets on the train, I get a knot in my stomach."

According to NYPD data, while transit crime has decreased since 2022, June actually saw 195 such incidents, an 18 percent jump over the 165 recorded during the same period last year.

There have been a number of high-profile incidents on the subway this year, including a number of fatal encounters between passengers. In May, homeless man Jordan Neely died after being put in a chokehold by ex-Marine Daniel Penny. Neely had been threatening passengers on the train, and was subdued by a group of men as a precaution. Bragg himself oversaw the charges of 2nd-degree manslaughter brought against Penny by a grand jury. 

In June, Jordan Williams was arrested on charges of manslaughter and criminal possession of a weapon following the fatal stabbing of Devictor Ouedraogo, who had choked Williams and punched his girlfriend. The charges were later dropped after it was found that Williams had acted in self-defense.

As the New York Post reports, Mayor Eric Adams suggested media coverage of stories like these was fueling the fear.

A recent poll conducted by Siena College found that 41 percent of New Yorkers now feel more concerned than ever about their safety, with 70 percent of those living in the city admitting that they're "very" or "somewhat" scared that they will be the victim of a crime.

Despite this, Bragg said he is optimistic about the future.

"I live here, I'm raising my family here, so we have a lot more work to do," he said, adding that, "we have really encouraging signs [that] the data is really moving in the right direction."