{"id":2096439,"date":"2023-11-10T14:28:02","date_gmt":"2023-11-10T19:28:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/subway-vigilantes-arent-the-problem-theyre-a-symptom-of-nycs-crime-catastrophe\/"},"modified":"2023-11-10T14:33:58","modified_gmt":"2023-11-10T19:33:58","slug":"subway-vigilantes-arent-the-problem-theyre-a-symptom-of-nycs-crime-catastrophe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/subway-vigilantes-arent-the-problem-theyre-a-symptom-of-nycs-crime-catastrophe\/","title":{"rendered":"Subway &#8216;vigilantes&#8217; reflect NYC&#8217;s crime catastrophe."},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">12<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fsubway-vigilantes-arent-the-problem-theyre-a-symptom-of-nycs-crime-catastrophe%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2096439&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><div class=\"article-content\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Is a Hero or a Villain?<\/h2>\n<blockquote>\n<p>Is a man who uses his firearm to\u2062 foil a crime a hero or \u200ba villain? According to New York City, people like John Rote, who saved a woman in a subway station by firing a warning shot to deter a robber \u2062demanding her purse, are vigilantes who deserve to be punished with potentially years in prison.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Matthew Roesch,\u200d a 49-year-old homeless man with a criminal\u200b record, demanded a woman pay him $1 for letting\u200b her through an emergency turnstile for free. When she refused, he threatened to snatch her \u200dpurse.<\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-2-long d-flex justify-content-center\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center; \" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-503768455\">\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-1379703300879-0\" class=\"mb-30\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-e93de6612f1264713409cc19fe1aa9d0 fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-2\" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-e93de6612f1264713409cc19fe1aa9d0\"><\/div>\n<p>John Rote, who appears to have\u200d lived in New York\u2064 City for nearly two decades, saw the crime and didn\u2019t hesitate to intervene on behalf of the woman.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGet away from \u200cher!\u201d Rote <a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2023\/11\/09\/metro\/subway-vigilante-yelled-get-away-from-her-just-before-he-opened-fire-sources\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">reportedly yelled<\/a> before pulling his silver pistol\u2063 \u2014 which he obtained legally 13 \u200byears ago, according to his attorney \u2014 out of his backpack and \u2062firing a shot near Roesch\u2019s feet. After reportedly firing a second shot, Rote holstered his gun in his\u200b bag and exited the station after confirming that Roesch\u200c was deterred from bothering the woman.\u200c No injuries were reported.<\/p>\n<p>The New York Police\u200b Department arrested and charged Rote on Tuesday night with criminal possession of a weapon,\u200c criminal possession of a firearm, reckless endangerment, and menacing. Prosecutors told the New York Post\u200d Rote faces three\u2062 and a half years in prison if convicted.<\/p>\n<p>Roesch also faced arrest and one charge of attempted robbery. If \u2063convicted, he faces \u2063a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.new-york-lawyers.org\/robbery-in-the-third-degree-new-york-penal-law-160-05.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">maximum \u2064sentence of seven years.<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-a63f05135144a3b6d71d0b6540259e32 fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-6\" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-a63f05135144a3b6d71d0b6540259e32\"><\/div>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Righteous Or Reckless?<\/h2>\n<p>During a press conference about the \u2062incident, New York City Transit President Richard Davey claimed Rote\u2064 was \u201cweird\u201d\u2064 for calmly neutralizing the threat.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThank goodness nobody was hurt here but\u200d what occurred was outrageous, reckless, and unacceptable,\u201d Davey <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/CollinRugg\/status\/1722756960393797656\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">concluded<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Any firearms instructor will tell you \u2064that Rote\u2019s\u2063 decision to fire his weapon in a busy subway\u200b was <a href=\"https:\/\/therangewi.com\/the-risk-of-using-your-gun-for-self-defense-in-a-crowd\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">not advised<\/a>. But what Davey completely missed \u2063in his press conference-turned-plea for gun control is the reason Rote fired the gun in the first place.<\/p>\n<p>Why did a man with no apparent connection to\u200c the 40-year-old \u200cwoman who was\u2064 harassed feel the need to intervene\u200c in a routine mugging? Maybe because he\u2019s seen\u2063 one too many news stories about some of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nyc.gov\/site\/nypd\/news\/p00093\/nypd-citywide-crime-statistics-september-2023\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">thousands of \u2064robberies<\/a> in Gotham turning into full-fledged assaults or even murder.<\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-25f18e435160c819d173540ca1638fc8 fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-10\" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-25f18e435160c819d173540ca1638fc8\"><\/div>\n<p>People like <a href=\"https:\/\/abc7ny.com\/bodega-shooting-upper-east-side-fatal-robbery\/12912865\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">an unsuspecting bodega worker<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2023\/09\/03\/man-shot-dead-during-attempted-robbery-at-nyc-gas-station-cops\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">a \u200bguy pumping \u2062his gas<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=y7DbenLbA1E\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">a deli employee<\/a>, and a <a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2023\/10\/05\/suspect-18-arrested-for-random-stabbing-of-nyc-activist\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">soft-on-crime\u200d activist<\/a> have all died in 2023 as the result of NYC stickups or street confrontations that went south.<\/p>\n<p>NYPD Inspector Steven Hill admitted\u200c that \u200balleged harasser Roesch was <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nydailynews.com\/2023\/11\/09\/manhattan-subway-vigilante-held-bail\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u201ca constant problem\u201d and \u201cswiper\u201d<\/a> who often camped\u200b out at the subway\u2019s emergency gate to hold the\u2062 gate open and then demand tips from people taking advantage of \u200dthe open\u200b entryway. Hill\u2019s department even arrested Roesch in September on\u2064 a\u2062 theft of service charge before releasing him back to the streets.<\/p>\n<p>If police were doing their jobs, \u200da known aggressor like Roesch wouldn\u2019t be at \u200b<a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/subway-vigilantes-arent-the-problem-theyre-a-symptom-of-nycs-crime-catastrophe\/\" title=\"Subway 'vigilantes' reflect NYC's crime catastrophe.\">subway stations repeatedly demanding\u200b city-dwellers hand<\/a> over \u200dtheir money and Rote\u200b wouldn\u2019t feel the \u200bneed to take matters into his own hands.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">When Cops Are Away, \u2063Criminals Play, and Citizens Who Step in Pay<\/h2>\n<p>NYC is governed by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/politics\/nyc-soft-crime-prosecutor-admits-getting-knot-stomach-family-takes-subway\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">soft-on-crime\u2063 politicians<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2023\/03\/28\/new-yorkers-want-thugs-to-face-bail-but-the-left-wont-listen\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">ruled by regulations<\/a> that let criminals \u2064back onto the streets instead of keeping them behind bars. The blue \u2062city\u2019s willingness to scale back punishment for the \u200cpeople terrorizing NYC\u2019s\u2062 streets \u200cand subway stations leaves crimefighting to citizens like Rote and Daniel Penny, who was charged \u2064with second-degree manslaughter and negligent homicide after restraining a homeless black man \u200dwith <a href=\"https:\/\/www.newsweek.com\/jordan-neely-arrest-record-outrage-grows-subway-death-1798248\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">42 prior arrests<\/a> from harming subway passengers.<\/p>\n<p>As cities like NYC continue to decline, \u200bdefense shootings will only become more common. Unfortunately for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/utah-axes-gun-permit-requirement\/\" title=\"Utah Axes Gun-Permit Requirement\u00a0\">law-abiding gun owners<\/a> who seek to protect their lives, \u200dproperty, and\u200d community from rampant crime,\u200d those\u2062 shootings <a href=\"https:\/\/news.yahoo.com\/subway-vigilante-hero-john-rotes-224359778.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">will only fuel Democrats\u2019 gun control wishes.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Already, NYC officials like Davey are using Rote\u2019s trigger-pulling as an example of why \u201cwe need to \u200cget a handle on the gun issue in the city.\u201d They\u2063 claim the rise in <a href=\"https:\/\/news.yahoo.com\/subway-vigilante-hero-john-rotes-224359778.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u201cvigilantism\u201d<\/a> is the problem instead of\u200b a symptom of a much deeper issue.<\/p>\n<p>Americans have\u2063 a constitutional right bear to arms and the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.oyez.org\/cases\/2021\/20-843\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Supreme Court<\/a> has ruled New York\u2064 can\u2019t make it harder\u200d for people to pack\u2063 heat for self-defense, but that won\u2019t stop far-left officials from punishing\u200b the people who\u2062 use their weapons to fend off bad guys.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s clear \u200dnow more than ever that citizens\u200b of NYC now\u200d face a difficult choice. They can choose to be\u200d damned to living in a hellhole of drugs, \u2062thievery, and \u200bmurder ushered in by corrupt, \u200bsoft-on crime overlords, or they can choose\u200d to be damned to possible jail time if they do \u200bsomething to stop the crime creep.<\/p>\n<p>The\u200c campaign to \u2062turn one man\u2019s apparently heroic act of protecting a woman \u2063from a \u2062thief into a\u200c villainous \u200boffense\u2064 proves that in cities run by Democrats who neglect crime, the law-abiding\u2064 citizens always lose.<\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-4af2f635b8d82fa256386ccf5ed7f677 fdrlst__b89e9-after-post-content\" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-4af2f635b8d82fa256386ccf5ed7f677\"><\/div>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\">\n<\/div>\n<p> <\/p>\n<h2> What alternative actions could John\u200b Rote have taken to ensure the safety of the woman without \u2063resorting to vigilantism?<\/h2>\n<p><span>  Firing-a-warning-shot\/&#8221;\u200d target=&#8221;_blank&#8221; rel=&#8221;noopener noreferrer&#8221;>highly risky\u2064 and dangerous<\/a>. It\u2063 put\u2064 not \u2064only the intended target at risk but also innocent bystanders who could\u200b have been\u200b hit by the bullet\u2062 or\u200d injured in the ensuing panic.<\/p>\n<p>It is\u2063 understandable\u2062 that Rote may have acted out of a desire \u200dto protect \u2063the woman \u200dfrom harm, but his actions were not\u200d commendable. There are\u2063 established protocols \u200cand procedures in place for dealing\u200c with such\u200c situations, and taking matters into one&#8217;s own hands can lead to unintended consequences.<\/p>\n<p>Instead of using his firearm, Rote could have alerted the authorities or\u200c sought help from nearby law enforcement officers. In a\u2063 bustling city like New York, assistance is readily\u2064 available, and it is the\u200b responsibility of the police to handle such incidents.<\/p>\n<p>Furthermore, firing warning shots is \u200bnot a recommended approach in self-defense scenarios.\u200b It can escalate the situation and potentially provoke \u2064the\u2062 assailant instead of deterring them. The use of firearms should be a last resort and \u2062employed only when there is an immediate threat to life.<\/p>\n<p>While Rote&#8217;s intentions may have\u2062 been \u2062noble, his actions do \u200cnot\u200c justify breaking the law. Possessing a firearm without the proper permits and using it in a public\u2064 space is a violation of \u200bthe law, regardless of \u2063the circumstances. The \u2063law exists to maintain order and to protect the\u200c safety of all individuals.<\/p>\n<p>On the other hand, it is crucial to examine the context \u200bin which Rote\u200c found himself. New York City has been\u2063 grappling with a rise in crime rates, particularly in the\u200d subway system. \u2062Reports of robberies and assaults \u2062have become alarmingly frequent, creating an atmosphere of fear and unease among commuters.<\/p>\n<p>Given this backdrop, it \u200bis perhaps understandable why Rote felt compelled\u2063 to take action. The failure \u2064of the authorities to address \u2063the security concerns of citizens may have\u200d driven individuals like Rote to resort to vigilante\u2062 actions to protect themselves and others.<\/p>\n<p>Nevertheless, \u200dit is\u2064 important to \u2064recognize that vigilante justice is not the solution. It undermines the rule \u200cof law and can lead to a chaotic and dangerous society. Rather than condoning or glorifying such actions, efforts should be made to \u2064address the root \u2064causes of crime and ensure the safety of all residents.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Conclusion<\/h2>\n<p>John Rote&#8217;s decision to fire a warning shot to deter a robber \u200draises complex questions about the distinction between heroism and vigilantism. While his \u200dactions may have been driven\u200c by \u2062a genuine\u200d desire to protect an innocent woman, they demonstrate a \u200dreckless\u2062 disregard for the safety of others \u2064and a disregard for the law.<\/p>\n<p>In a society governed by the rule of law,\u200b it is\u2063 essential that individuals \u2062trust in \u200dthe ability\u200b of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/murder-victims-brother-slams-chicago-district-attorney-for-active-war-zone\/\" title=\"Brother of murder victim criticizes Chicago DA over 'war zone'\">law \u2064enforcement \u200bagencies<\/a> to maintain \u2064order\u2062 and protect citizens. Taking matters into \u2063one&#8217;s own hands, especially in potentially volatile situations, \u200conly\u2064 serves to \u2064undermine \u2063that \u2064trust and create more harm than good.<\/p>\n<p>If we want to foster a safe and \u200bsecure society, \u200bit is necessary\u200b to address the underlying issues that contribute to crime\u2062 and \u200binsecurity. This\u2062 entails strengthening law enforcement,\u2062 improving social programs, and creating\u2062 an environment where \u200cindividuals\u200b feel safe reporting crimes and seeking assistance.<\/p>\n<p>Ultimately, the hero\/villain dichotomy \u2062is \u2063an oversimplification. It is more productive \u200dto \u200bfocus on the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/covenant-school-shooting-purported-manifesto-sparks-local-investigations-and-condemnation\/\" title=\"Covenant School shooting: Alleged manifesto prompts local probes and condemnation.\">broader societal factors<\/a> that influence individuals&#8217; decisions and actions. Only \u200bby doing so can \u200bwe hope to create a society where everyone feels safe\u200c and secure, and where the rule of law is respected \u200bby all.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Is a man who uses his firearm to foil a crime a hero or a villain? According to New York City, people like John Rote, who saved a woman in a subway station by firing a warning shot to deter a robber demanding her purse, are vigilantes who deserve to be punished with potentially years<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":490,"featured_media":2096440,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[546],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2096439","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-federalist"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2096439","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/490"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2096439"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2096439\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2096440"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2096439"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2096439"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2096439"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}