New York: State Police Charged a Binghamton Man for Hate Crime

New York Police have arrested and charged a Jamaican man with murder following the shooting death of his niece, who was killed while sitting in her SUV in the Bronx, New York, on Monday night. Police charged Michael Foster, 58, on Wednesday with murder, manslaughter, and criminal possession of a weapon in connection with the fatal shooting of 39-year-old Julia Anderson, whose parents are Jamaican. According to police and media reports, Anderson was inside her Jeep Grand Cherokee in the Wakefield section of the Bronx shortly before midnight when she was shot twice in the chest. Emergency responders rushed her to Jacobi Hospital, where the authorities pronounced her dead. At the time of the shooting, Anderson had just completed her 4:00 PM to midnight shift and was parked across the street from the family home she shared with Foster, Police have not disclosed a motive for the killing. However, unconfirmed reports suggest that the shooting is likely linked to an ongoing dispute over the inheritance of a family home that belonged to Foster’s mother, Icilda Foster, who passed away in 2023. Icilda reportedly willed the house to her eldest grandchild, Anderson, which angered Foster. Initially, investigators believed Anderson had been shot by someone riding a moped, as witnesses reported seeing one speed away from the scene. However, authorities have not determined whether the moped rider was the shooter or merely someone fleeing the area. Officers recovered two spent shell casings at the scene. Anderson, who lived with her mother in nearby Mount Vernon, was reportedly on her way home from work when she was killed. In an interview with a local television station, her mother, Beverly Patterson, expressed her concern when her daughter failed to arrive home at the usual time. "My heart felt like it was going to come out," Patterson said after learning of her daughter’s death. Family members described Anderson as a hardworking woman who dedicated her life to caring for people with disabilities. She was just one month shy of her 40th birthday.

New York State Police have accused a white man from Binghamton, New York, of threatening to hang a Black state senator from a tree.

Police arrested James A. Crosby, 48, on June 23. He is facing felony charges for making a terroristic threat categorized as a hate crime, according to the New York State Police. Crosby is currently in the Broome County jail without bail.

On June 19, Lea Webb, who represents New York’s 52nd District, spoke at a Juneteenth flag-raising ceremony at Binghamton City Hall. The celebration included prayers and the singing of the Black national anthem.

In her speech, Webb highlighted that progress towards freedom and justice does not occur in isolation and underscored the significance of community and collective commitment.

Crosby, a resident of Binghamton, was apparently enraged by these concepts. Because, according to the New York State Police, he allegedly jumped into the comments section of a Facebook post by local station WBNG 12 regarding the ceremony and posted a disturbing message directed at the senator. To wit: “I’d be proud to hang you from a tree.”

New York State Police said suspect possessed a rifle, a large-capacity magazine, and a suppressor, all of which state law prohibits .

New York State Police quickly launched an investigation. During the investigation, they discovered that Crosby possessed a rifle, a large-capacity magazine, and a suppressor, all of which state law prohibits .

Furthermore, due to a previous felony conviction, state law prohibited Crosby from owning firearms.

As a result, police charged him with four additional counts of criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree, class D felonies.

Senator Webb issued a statement on June 25. She called the threats against her “extremely disappointing and hurtful,” especially since they came in response to a story about Juneteenth.

She wrote, “Feedback and thoughts on policy are one thing, but to make a public call for lethal violence is absolutely unacceptable and dangerous. We must recognize our shared humanity and reject violence in all forms.”

The senator also thanked New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, law enforcement, and others for their “swift response” to the alleged threat.

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