New York City Criminal Court Judge Janice Robinson is facing criticism for a pattern of decisions in which she has repeatedly released defendants on low bail or no bail, even when prosecutors have requested their detention. This practice has drawn particular ire following a recent incident where a suspect, Nayshawn Wilkinson, was released on $5,000 bail just weeks before allegedly shooting another individual.
In the prior case, Wilkinson faced charges including attempted murder for allegedly firing shots that struck a 15-year-old victim in the foot. Prosecutors urged the court to hold Wilkinson without bail, but Judge Robinson instead set bail at $5,000 or a $10,000 bond. The suspect was later released. On Wednesday, a different judge set Wilkinson's bail at $500,000 in the new case.
According to reports, this is not an isolated incident. In the month prior to the Wilkinson case, Robinson reportedly released two other defendants accused of attempted murder without any bail. The source claims that Robinson has never granted a prosecutor's request for bail or remand in 13 reviewed arraignments, resulting in either no bail or low bail for the defendants.
Critics argue that these decisions contribute to an increase in violent crime, citing NYPD data showing a threefold increase in arrests for felony assault by individuals with three or more prior arrests for the same offense between 2018 and the present year. The implementation of state criminal justice reforms, such as cashless bail in 2019, is also mentioned as a contributing factor to the rise in such offenses.
Robinson's judicial background has also been noted, with the source mentioning she is the niece of former Assemblyman Nick Perry. The article suggests that the judge-picking system in New York can produce unqualified jurists.
The commentary asserts that judges who repeatedly release dangerous individuals, even when the law allows for their detention, allow violent offenders to re-offend. The article contrasts the current approach with the argument that the system is perceived as "racist" if it remands too many Black or Hispanic defendants, stating that this overlooks the fact that minority communities are often the primary victims of crime. The author calls for court system administrators to remove Judge Robinson from the bench to prevent further incidents of avoidable violence.