Jason Kish: NYC man accused of shooting Jewish dad and son, 7, with BB gun released without bond
Warning: This article contains disturbing footage that could be traumatic for some readers. Discretion is advised
NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: Jason Kish, a Staten Island man, accused of shooting a Jewish father and his 7-year-old son with a BB gun was released without bond on Wednesday, December 7, disappointing prosecutors and infuriating the boy's mother.
A spokesman for the Staten Island district attorney stated that Kish, 25, was charged with attempted felony assault as an anti-Semitic hate crime but because neither victim was severely injured, a court was unable to set bail under the state's criminal justice reform statutes, as reported by NY DailyNews. Alexander Klein and his father Isaac Klein, 32, were allegedly the targets of Kish's drive-by attack on the Island Kosher supermarket on Victory Boulevard in Castleton Corners on Sunday, December 4. Cops said that while Klein and his son were both sporting yarmulkes, the man shot them with a BB gun that fired gel-like pellets. Alexander received a grazing wound to the ear and Isaac was struck in the chest.
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In an interview with the Daily News on Wednesday, December 7, the boy's mother, who declined to disclose her name, said, "Wow. I was sure he'd be locked up. How could that guy be in the streets if my son is still not sleeping at night? He's up at night! He wanted to know what would've happened if it was a real gun."
This black Mustang is wanted in regards to an assault with a BB gun on Victory Blvd, @NYPD121pct & @NYPDHateCrimes is investigating. pic.twitter.com/Or0BpCcHgu
— Staten Island Shomrim safety Patrol (@SISPShomrim) December 5, 2022
The mother added, "What am I gonna tell him, he's back on the streets now? Because of the system? He's a little kid. He doesn't understand. He understands that he could've been shot dead. That's what he understands."
Staten Island District Attorney Michael McMahon's spokesman Andrew Crawford attributed Kish's release to a murky legal snag that he called "at best an oversight and at worst just total legislative malpractice by the Assembly and the Senate."
A revision to the state's 2020 bail reform regulations makes attempted second-degree assault, a more serious offense, ineligible for bail, but third-degree assault that is categorized as a hate crime is now eligible. "We're [of] the opinion that the Legislature just messed up and didn't do a very good job in making the changes that they wanted to make," Crawford said.
"We don't have the serious physical injury part," Crawford continued, noting that the prosecution had requested a $25,000 cash bail or a $75,000 bond. Mark Fonte, Kish's attorney, withheld from acknowledging that his client fired the pellet gun, but insisted that there was no evidence of a hate crime.
"The law is clear that just because the victim in an incident is of a certain religion, race — that in and of itself is insufficient to make out that it's a hate crime. None of that exists here. It appears that whoever did this shooting was involved in random acts of stupidity and not targeting because of race or religion. I believe the NYPD jumped to conclusions without assessing the entire situation," Fonte stated.