(The Center Square) — New York officials are under pressure to make changes to the state’s mental health laws following a brutal rampage in downtown Manhattan by a deranged, knife-wielding man.
Ramon Rivera, a 51-year-old homeless man, went on a stabbing rampage on Nov. 18 that spanned several city blocks and killed three people before he was arrested, authorities said. He has been charged with three counts of first-degree murder.
News that Rivera had recently been released early from Rikers Island jail, where he was serving a sentence for burglary and an attempted assault on a correction officer, is fueling public outrage and criticism of the state and city officials for not doing enough to deal with mental health problems.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams described Rivera as a troubled man with a criminal history and “severe mental health issues,” an example of failures of the criminal justice and mental health systems. He defended the city’s decision to release Rivera for “good behavior” but said the incident was an example of the dangerous intersection between homelessness and mental health issues.
“Even if he stood in jail longer, let’s say he’s sitting in jail for two years, that has nothing to do with the fact that he needed help,” Adams told reporters at a Tuesday briefing. “So if he would have got out 90 days later and stabbed three people, it’s just as bad. The system is broken.”
The mayor’s calls to improve mental health treatment come amid a torrent of criticism of state and New York City officials, as well as Gov. Kathy Hochul, in response to Rivera’s deadly stabbing spree.
Rep. Ritchie Torres, a Bronx Democrat who is weighing a run for governor, slammed the Adams and Hochul administration for being “complicit” in the murders, saying the authorities who “failed to protect the public” should be fired.
“These tragedies are preventable but neither the city nor the state seem to possess the political will to prevent them, despite having the tools to do so,” the congressman wrote.
Torres blasted the city’s Department of Corrections for making the “inexplicable and inexcusable decision” to release Rivera from prison after serving just nine months of a 12-month sentence.
“The bureaucrats in DOC who authorized the early release of Ramon should be fired,” he wrote. “Those who cannot be entrusted with public safety should no longer be employed by the people of New York.”