The ‘four people’ bit is irrelevant. You seem to think that getting mugged in NY is a rare occurrence. It is - relatively speaking, compared to the 70s and 80s - but not *that *rare. I’ve spent almost 10 years living in New York from the 90s on - after things got better - and I was mugged twice; once by a guy on 44th and Lex - literally seconds from Grand Central, of all places - and once by two guys in Brooklyn.
Goetz’s mistake was going to the police and confessing. What he should have done was
[ul][li]Shoot the four guys[/li][li]Get off the subway[/li][li]Wipe the gun clean[/li][li]Ditch the gun down a sewer opening[/li][li]Go home[/li][li]Never mention it to anyone, at any time, for any reason.[/ul]The cops would never catch him, and he could have avoided the trial and the civil verdict. [/li]
Regards,
Shodan
I don’t believe this is true in the long run. If I was an New Yorker during that time period I wouldn’t want the subway I rode every day being thought of as “easy money” by criminals. The concept of deterrence shouldn’t be understated.
Do I need some sort of crime victim credentials to post an opinion here?
OK, I’ve never been mugged by four people on the subway. I was once mugged by around 8 or 10 people on the subway, though. I think it was in 1978, on the Seventh Avenue line at, if I remember right, the 103rd St. stop. Roughed up a bit, too.
In 1981 (maybe 1982) I was held up at gunpoint. I was driving a cab at the time. Took a fare down to Avenue B and Houston. New Yorkers of a certain age will know what went on there. Two guys jumped in as my fare got out, directed me to somewhere else in Alphabet City, I pulled over to the curb at the destination, one pulled a gun and robbed me. Sucked, 'cause I still had to pay the lease fee to the cab company.
I got held up at gunpoint in a movie theater in Queens in 1977.
I actually got stabbed in 1979. Just nicked – the guy lunged with the knife, I was wearing a leather jacket, he got my arm, and it went through just enough to scratch me.
We can never know, but probably not any better for Goetz. Eight eyewitnesses testified at the trial, and to get the conviction they got, the state would just have to convince the jury that Goetz was the man the witnesses saw, and that he’d possessed a loaded gun on the subway that day. The state could easily prove that Goetz had no license to possess a handgun. So, barring disagreement amongst the witnesses as to whether Goetz was the man they saw, no difference.
Maybe he should have left the subway immediately, without talking to anyone. Is an anonymous call to a hotline enough to get you into a line up?
But mostly I mean, instead of saying “I am the guy they are looking for in New York”, say “My name is Bernie Goetz. This is my lawyer, Mr. Howe of Dewey, Cheatham, and Howe. Please direct all questions to him.”
If the witnesses told police that Goetz was the man they saw, that’s enough to charge him with what he was charged with, I’m fairly sure. So, this hinges on whether the anonymous tip was enough to arrest Goetz.