BS BULLETIN:
- A New York Post review of 13 cases found Judge Janice Robinson released eight defendants without bail and set substantially lower bail than prosecutors requested in five others.
- The cases include attempted murder, shootings, robbery and gun charges.
- One repeat defendant released under supervision was arrested again weeks later.
If Brooklyn prosecutors are wondering why they bother bringing a calculator to bail hearings, Judge Janice Robinson may have supplied the answer.
A disturbing New York Post review of more than a dozen cases handled by the Brooklyn Criminal Court judge found Robinson repeatedly rejecting prosecutors’ requests for substantial bail — including cases involving defendants accused of attempted murder, shootings, robbery and illegal guns.
Of the 13 cases examined, eight defendants were released without bail. The remaining five received bail dramatically below what prosecutors requested.
And the numbers in some cases are astonishing. Take 21-year-old Jonathan Morris. Morris appeared before Robinson facing two cases involving an attempted-murder charge and weapons possession. Prosecutors reportedly asked that he be held on $250,000 cash bail.
Robinson set bail at $5,000 in one case. In the other? One dollar. Yes. $1.
Another defendant, 19-year-old Nayshawn Wilkinson, was charged with attempted murder after allegedly firing a gun into a busy Brooklyn intersection. Prosecutors asked that he be held without bail. Robinson instead set $5,000 cash bail or a $10,000 bond. Wilkinson posted it. And according to the Post, he already had another pending attempted-murder case.
A frustrated law-enforcement source told the newspaper Robinson has “never set bail over $10,000” in the cases reviewed, including attempted murder. The source blasted the refusal to impose “meaningful bail” on alleged shooters and repeat offenders who have demonstrated that they “will shoot, steal and do violence no matter how many bites at the apple they get.”
Then there’s 32-year-old Elijah Guy. Prosecutors say Guy pulled a gun during a dispute with a 66-year-old man and fired twice. The DA reportedly requested $50,000 cash bail or a bond as high as $100,000. Robinson released him without bail. He was also facing a separate assault case stemming from an incident days earlier.
In another case, 36-year-old Blackman Devon was allegedly caught with a loaded firearm and faced felony drug charges. Prosecutors asked for $100,000 cash bail. Robinson released him.
Then there is the case that demonstrates why critics are worried about repeat offenders. Sunny Demitro, 31, had at least 10 open cases when he appeared before Robinson after allegedly stealing a vehicle and fleeing a hit-and-run. The case included 38 charges. Prosecutors requested $25,000 cash bail or a $50,000 bond. Robinson put him on supervised release. Weeks later, Demitro was arrested again in connection with a new grand-larceny allegation. A different judge then imposed bail.
Robinson was elected to Brooklyn’s Civil Court in 2024 and only recently moved onto the criminal bench. She is the niece of former longtime Democratic New York Assemblyman Nick Perry, who later served as U.S. ambassador to Jamaica. Her release decisions aren’t confined to the Post’s review.
Earlier this year, the Brooklyn District Attorney’s own office announced that a man accused of stealing $386,187 in pandemic-relief funds had been arraigned before Robinson on felony grand-larceny and fraud charges. He was released without bail. To be clear, none of these defendants has been convicted merely because he was charged, and New York judges operate under state bail laws that substantially constrain how detention decisions are made. But that doesn’t explain away the enormous gulf between what prosecutors are requesting and what Robinson is ordering in cases where bail is legally available.
Most of the defendants remain scheduled for future court appearances, meaning it is not yet known whether they will all return as ordered. But New Yorkers are entitled to ask a fairly straightforward question: If prosecutors believe someone accused of attempted murder should be held on $250,000 bail, how does the number become $5,000 — or, incredibly, one buck — by the time the defendant leaves the courtroom?
DBS WIRE SOURCES:
- New York Post — Bail-hating NYC judge has knack for cutting accused criminals loose — even in attempted-slay cases
- Brooklyn District Attorney — Brooklyn man arrested for pandemic-related loan fraud
- Brooklyn Eagle — Brooklyn courts and law coverage
