WM, 42 NYPD detective shot, killed by friendly fire during negro robbery in Queens

[voiceofreason]

https://abc7ny.com/veteran-nypd-detective-killed-by-friendly-fire-during-robbery/5135195/

19-year veteran NYPD detective shot, killed by friendly fire during robbery in Queens

2/13/19

RICHMOND HILL, Queens (WABC) --
An NYPD detective was killed by friendly fire during a robbery in Queens.

The shooting was reported near Atlantic Avenue and 121st Street in the Richmond Hill section around 6 p.m. Tuesday.

The incident unfolded as officers responded to an armed robbery at a T-Mobile store. Police said it turns out the suspect was carrying a fake weapon, but multiple officers fired several rounds.

Detective Brian Simonsen, 42, and Sergeant Matthew Gorman were struck by gunfire. The detective, a 19-year veteran of the force, died from injuries suffered in the shooting.


Friendly fire aside, Police Commissioner James O'Neill said Simonsen's death is due to the actions of the suspect, described as a career criminal.


The suspect, 27-year-old Christopher Ransom, was shot and wounded. He was taken to the hospital and is in stable condition.

 

[The Bobster]

https://nypost.com/2019/02/13/suspe...f-nypd-detectives-death-is-a-career-criminal/

Suspected robber at center of NYPD detective’s death is a career criminal
By Tina Moore, Larry Celona and Natalie Musumeci
February 13, 2019 | 11:48am

Christopher Ransom, the suspect in a Queens robbery attempt. Facebook


The suspected robber who held up a Queens T-Mobile store leading to the death of an NYPD detective is a career criminal who once was busted for impersonating a cop, lied his way into a Brooklyn court internship and was busted for stalking two judges six years ago.

In 2013, Christopher Ransom – then 22 – was convicted of violating a court order to keep away from a pair of female Brooklyn judges after he lied his way into a judicial internship.

Ransom, 27, was arrested on April 3, 2013, on charges of criminal impersonation, criminal contempt and criminal trespass.

Earlier that year Ransom pleaded guilty to lying about being a student at Kingsborough Community College to land the internship and sneak into restricted areas of the courthouse, including the judge’s chambers.

Christopher Ransom sits behind a judge’s bench while on a tour in 2013.
Facebook


He was ultimately slapped with orders of protection to stay away from Brooklyn Supreme Court Judge Patricia DiMango and Judge Ruth Shillingford.

“He was obsessed with the idea of getting into the courthouse without passing the magnetometers,” DiMango testified at his trial, The Post previously reported.

“He would come into my courtroom on various occasions and try to get the attention of the court officers,” DiMango said in testimony at the time, adding, “I said, ‘Maybe I can help you get an internship with another judge,’ and he said, ‘No, I want to do an internship with you.”

DiMango said she eventually gave in, giving Ransom an internship that allowed him to observe her one morning a week.

Ransom has a total of 25 prior arrests on his record, including one for impersonating a police officer in 2016.

The career crook is accused of robbing a T-Mobile store in Richmond Hill, Queens Tuesday night using a fake gun.

Responding officers Det. 42-year-old Det. Brian Simonsen was killed and Sgt. Matthew Gorman was wounded in friendly fire, officials said.

 

[The Bobster]

https://nypost.com/2019/02/14/suspe...e-shooting-was-detached-from-reality-teacher/

Suspect in NYPD friendly-fire shooting was ‘detached from reality’: teacher
By Gabrielle Fonrouge
February 14, 2019 | 10:28am | Updated February 14, 2019 | 11:21am

The robbery suspect who sparked the friendly-fire shooting that killed an NYPD detective was “detached from reality and real consequences,” a former college professor of his told The Post.

“I was afraid for him then,” said Paula Cash, who taught career criminal Christopher Ransom, 27, when she was an adjunct professor at the College of New Rochelle in 2015.

“I tried to get him to see a therapist but he said he does these things for jokes. He found his place and it’s goofing off and taking the RISKS no one would,” Cash, who taught Ransom digital literacy and communication courses, wrote in a Facebook message.

Ransom was a self-proclaimed social-media prankster with a penchant for the eccentric, capturing some of his misguided stunts on video.

He once walked into Brooklyn’s 71st Precinct and offered “vigilante services” to a crowd of baffled police officers while wearing nothing but a red cape, black briefs, sneakers and sunglasses. He used the same outfit to stop an MTA city bus in 2016.

Ransom has been hit with charges including murder and aggravated manslaughter for his role in NYPD Detective Brian Simonsen’s death Tuesday night, when police said Ransom allegedly robbed a T-Mobile store in Richmond Hill with a fake gun.

Some of Ransom’s pals believed the incident was a prank gone wrong — even though there is no indication he was filming. Police sources provided a much darker theory for the alleged crime late Wednesday: attempted suicide by cop.

“He was truly a silly young man, mimicking slapstick comedy [such] as, ‘The Three Stooges’ and ‘Jackass’ the show and movie’. However, he was very detached from reality and real consequences,” Cash said.

“Or was he? He needed support and he needed to feel a sense of belonging. Those risky behaviors were his way of being fearless in a world where a young black man would feel powerless and I am sure, this risky business was his great escape.”

 

[The Bobster]

https://nypost.com/2019/02/14/nypd-releases-photo-of-imitation-gun-used-in-deadly-queens-robbery/

NYPD releases photo of imitation gun used in deadly Queens robbery
By Yaron Steinbuch
February 14, 2019 | 7:33am | Updated

The imitation pistol allegedly brandished during a robbery in a Queens cellphone store that led to Detective Brian Simonsen's death.


The NYPD on Thursday released a photo of the imitation handgun that they say a masked career criminal used in a Queens robbery that led to the friendly-fire death of Detective Brian Simonsen.

The BB gun — marked as a Colt 1911 Target — is based on the .45-caliber M1911 and is readily available online for about $15, but sold with an orange tip to differentiate it from a real firearm.

Unlike the real deal, the gun is also spring-powered and fires 6mm pellets.

Simonsen, 42, a 19-year veteran of the NYPD, died in the shooting Tuesday night that also left Sgt. Matthew Gorman wounded.

Gorman, 31, and two fellow officers were the first to push into a T-Mobile store, which they found abandoned — until suspect Christopher Ransom sprang from the back room, pointed the fake gun at them and pulled the trigger, authorities said.

Assuming his gun was real and had simply jammed, the trio retreated to the street, where they took up tactical positions along with Simonsen and four other cops, according to police.

Ransom, 27, emerged from the store and continued to dry fire his pistol as seven officers squeezed off a total of 42 rounds.

Gorman, who fired 11 times, was struck in the leg. Simonsen, who was not wearing a bulletproof vest, got off two shots before being hit in the chest, authorities said.

Ransom, who remained hospitalized Wednesday, was hit with a slew of charges, including murder, assault, robbery and *aggravated manslaughter.

 

[The Bobster]

https://nypost.com/2019/02/15/second-suspect-arrested-in-friendly-fire-death-of-nypd-detective/

Second suspect arrested in friendly fire death of NYPD detective
By Tina Moore and Ben Feuerherd
February 15, 2019 | 7:27pm | Updated

Police arrested a second suspect Friday in the robbery that led to the friendly fire death of Detective Brian Simonsen, police sources told The Post.

As first reported by The Post, the suspect acted as a lookout as Christopher Ransom robbed a T-Mobile store in Richmond Hill with an imitation pistol at about 6 p.m. on Tuesday, the sources said.

The man, whose name was not released , was arrested on Merrick Boulevard in Queens, the sources said. He was brought to the 102nd Precinct and is being questioned by investigators.

Police used Simonsen’s cuffs to restrain him when they took him into custody, according to police sources.

Simonsen was killed when responding cops fired more than 40 shots at Ransom after he pointed his fake gun at them, police said.

 

[The Bobster]

https://nypost.com/2019/02/16/accused-accomplice-charged-with-murder-in-nypd-friendly-fire-death/

Accused accomplice charged with murder in NYPD friendly fire death
By Tina Moore and Larry Celona
February 16, 2019 | 9:45pm | Updated February 16, 2019 | 11:24pm

A suspected lookout in the friendly-fire death of NYPD Detective Brian Simonsen was hit Saturday with second-degree-murder and other charges.

Jagger Freeman, 25, of Queens, was busted as an alleged accomplice to Christopher Ransom, who cops say wielded a fake gun at a Queens T-Mobile store Tuesday night, prompting officers to open fire.

Freeman was also charged with two counts of first-degree robbery and one count of second-degree robbery, along with assault and criminal possession of a gun.

His specific role in the tragedy was unclear Saturday night.

“We placed him close to the scene,” Police Commissioner James O’Neill told NY1. “It appears that he was acting as a lookout.’’

Freeman has nine prior arrests and three felony convictions, sources said.

“I didn’t do it,” he insisted to The Post outside the 107th Precinct station house, his hands bound behind his back with Simonsen’s handcuffs. Asked if he was in any way connected to the crime, he said, “No, I was not.”

Mary Freeman, who identified herself his mom, insisted he had “nothing to do with that,’’ and called him a “good kid,” who played high school basketball and attended college for a year.

Paula Cash, a professor at the College of New Rochelle, told The Post Thursday Ransom was “detached from reality.’’

O’Neill said Saturday that Ransom’s mental health is not part of the equation.

“I’m not really concerned about his mental state,” the top cop said. “I know what he did on Tuesday night and that’s what he needs to be responsible for.”

Detectives union president Mike Palladino said, “If [Ransom] simply surrendered without incident we wouldn’t be where we are now.”

 

[The Bobster]

https://nypost.com/2019/02/17/accused-lookout-in-nypd-friendly-fire-death-charged-with-murder/

Accused lookout in NYPD friendly fire death arraigned on murder charges
By Khristina Narizhnaya and Max Jaeger
February 17, 2019 | 12:37pm | Updated February 17, 2019 | 1:04pm

Jagger Freeman during his arraignment Sunday. Ellis Kaplan


The lookout in the Queens robbery-gone-wrong that left a 19-year veteran cop dead was slapped with 13 charges, including felony murder, during his arraignment Sunday.

Cops say Jagger Freeman, 25, was acting as a lookout when his pal Christopher Ransom robbed a Queens T-Mobile store on Tuesday using an imitation pistol.

Ransom’s erratic behavior during the standoff triggered cops to fire 42 shots at Ransom — one of which struck Sgt. Matthew Gorman in the leg and another of which fatally struck Det. Brian Simonsen in the chest.

“The defendant is wholly responsible and wholly culpable for the injury sustained by detective Gorman and the untimely death of Detective Simonsen,” Queens Assistant District Attorney Michael Curtis said.

Freeman, who appeared disheveled, kept his head low as public defender Jonathan Latimer announced: “The defendant maintained his innocence.”

Prosecutors said Tuesday’s robbery was the second that Ransom and Freeman committed.

Freeman “aided and abetted his co-defendant to violently take what did not belong to them” during a Feb. 8 holdup as well, the prosecutor said.

Meanwhile, on Sunday, Detectives Endowment Association president President Michael Palladino repeated the theory that Ransom, who was shot but not killed, was trying to commit suicide by cop.

“It’s one thing to commit an armed robbery. But to then point a pellet gun at a lot of cops during the commission of that robbery is really bizarre behavior. It sounds to me like he just wanted to commit suicide-by-cop,” Palladino told the Cats Roundtable on AM 970.

“The sad irony though is that he survived and our detective died.”

Judge Guy Mitchell ordered Freeman held without bail.

 

[The Bobster]

https://nypost.com/2019/02/19/lawye...rder-in-nypd-friendly-fire-hes-the-scapegoat/

Lawyer of man accused of murder in NYPD friendly fire: he’s the scapegoat
By Sarah Trefethen, Shari Logan and Aaron Feis
February 19, 2019 | 9:41pm

One of the men charged with murder in the friendly-fire death of an NYPD detective was hit with top charges in a “Soviet Union” style bid to distract from the cops’ failures that night, his lawyer claimed Tuesday.

“Obviously, procedures were violated, obviously people screwed up,” Christopher Ransom’s lawyer, (((Ken Finkelman))), told reporters shortly after his client was formally indicted in the Feb. 12 death of Detective Brian Simonsen. “One way of distracting from all that is to say it’s all Mr. Ransom’s fault.”

“It just has a Kafkaesque, Soviet Union-type feel to it,” Finkelman railed, adding that his client was being “overcharged and scapegoated” as part of the purported misdirection maneuver.

Ransom, a 27-year-old career criminal, was packing a fake gun when he robbed a Richmond Hill cellphone store just over a week ago, police say.

When he allegedly charged toward cops with the realistic-looking firearm, seven officers fired 42 bullets.

Ransom was struck eight times, but also hit were Simonsen, fatally, and Sgt. Matthew Gorman, who survived a shot to the leg.

Finkelman added that it was “ridiculous” that Ransom was charged with murder for “waving around a toy gun” — and speculated that the man he’s charged with killing would agree.

“The deceased detective seems like a great guy, a wonderful person,” Finkelman said. “I really have doubts that he would have wanted to see our client go away for the rest of his life pursuant to a homicide charge in these circumstances.”

Meanwhile, NYPD brass and city officials, including Police Commissioner James O’Neill and Mayor de Blasio, went to a Long Island church for the second day of wakes for Simonsen.

The mourners at the Church of St. Rosalie in Hamptons Bay also included Gorman, in a wheelchair and clad in his ceremonial dress blues.

Simonsen’s funeral will be held Wednesday.

 

[The Bobster]

https://nypost.com/2019/02/24/suspect-in-nypd-friendly-fire-robbery-i-wasnt-there/

Suspect in NYPD friendly-fire robbery: ‘I wasn’t there’
By Khristina Narizhnaya
February 24, 2019 | 6:51pm

He’s charged with a cop’s murder — but he swears he wasn’t even there.

The lookout who allegedly kept watch as a buddy held up a Queens cellphone store, leading to the friendly-fire death of an NYPD detective, insisted Sunday he was never at the scene.

“There is no ‘my side of the story,’” Jagger Freeman, 25, told The Post in an exclusive interview inside the Manhattan Detention Center. “I told you all already, I’m innocent.”

“I wasn’t there,” Freeman added — though the Enterprise Rent-a-Car worker and Queensborough Community College student didn’t say exactly where he was on the night of Feb. 12.

That’s when he allegedly kept a lookout while career criminal Christopher Ransom went into the T-Mobile store at the corner of Atlantic Avenue and 120th Street, pulled a phony gun and announced a robbery.

Eight NYPD cops responded and fired a total of 42 shots at Ransom as he headed for the store’s door, holding the faux firearm aloft and pulling the trigger, authorities have said.

Ransom was hit — but so were two lawmen, including Det. Brian Simonsen, fatally struck in the chest. Ransom and Freeman are charged with the detective’s murder.

But Freeman — whom police sources have said was caught on surveillance video arriving at the store with Ransom — refused to offer anything else in his defense before ending the interview by banging on a door to get a guard’s attention.

 

[The Bobster]

https://nypost.com/2019/03/11/men-a...led-to-cops-death-indicted-on-murder-charges/

Men accused of taking part in robbery that led to cop’s death indicted on murder charges
By Elizabeth Rosner and Emily Saul
March 11, 2019 | 8:08pm | Updated March 11, 2019 | 11:07pm

Christopher Ransom (left) and Jagger Freeman
Facebook; Ellis Kaplan


The two men accused of taking part in a Queens cellphone store heist that led to the friendly fire death of an NYPD detective have been indicted on murder charges.

Christopher Ransom and Jagger Freeman both pleaded “not guilty” Monday to the new 23-count indictment, which includes charges of second-degree murder, first- and second-degree robbery, second-degree assault, third- and fourth-degree grand larceny and fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon.

Ransom, 27, was arraigned via video conference from Bellevue Hospital, while Freeman, 25, appeared in court.

Brian Simonsen
AP


Detective Brian Simonsen was fatally shot when he and others responded to reports of a robbery on Feb. 12 in the T-Mobile store at the corner of Atlantic Avenue and 120th Street.

Sgt. Matthew Gorman was also injured in the shootout.

During the heist, Ransom allegedly pulled a fake gun while Freeman kept watch.

“This was a tragic incident that should have never happened,” Chief Assistant District Attorney John M. Ryan said on behalf of Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown. “The police, doing what they do every day without hesitation, responded to the scene.

“One of the defendants allegedly ran at and pointed his fake gun at the police and the responding officers fired. Detective Brian Simonsen was killed and Sgt. Matthew Gorman was seriously injured.”

If convicted, both men face up to life behind bars.

The pair is due back in court May 15.

 

[The Bobster]

https://nypost.com/2019/05/15/suspe...oclaims-innocence-asks-judge-for-a-ride-home/

Suspect at center of NYPD cop’s death proclaims innocence, asks judge for a ‘ride home’
By Reuven Fenton and Bruce Golding
May 15, 2019 | 8:03pm

A career criminal who’s accused of causing the friendly fire death of an NYPD cop — by robbing a cellphone store with a fake gun — stunned a packed courtroom on Wednesday when he asked the judge for a “ride home.”

”I had nothing to do with any of the incident that I’m here for today. I had nothing to do with it. Can you just give me a ride home? Or call me a cab? I had nothing to do with this,” Christopher Ransom said during an appearance in Queens Supreme Court.

But instead of a chauffeured drive, Ransom got a stern warning from Justice Kenneth Holder.

“If you say another word. I’m putting you in the back, it’s as simple as that. You’re doing a great disservice. You have three lawyers,” Holder fumed.

Ransom’s outrageous request followed an extended back-and-forth that began when he interrupted a pretrial hearing to say “Your honor, I want to make a statement.”

Although Holder repeatedly told Ransom that “I don’t want to hear what you have to say,” the defendant — who’s being held without bail in the fatal shooting of Det. Brian Simonsen — wouldn’t shut up until he spoke his mind.

The bizarre incident marked the second time Ransom, 27, tested the judge’s patience in a courtroom filled with nearly 100 cops.

Earlier, he and co-defendant Jagger Freeman, 25, delayed the proceeding for more than half an hour while they changed out of their jail duds and into a charcoal suit for Ransom and khakis and a white shirt for Freeman.

“It took 40 minutes to come out here,” Holder said.

“I don’t know if it’s a function of clothing, but I’m going to mark this for trial, so that when they come from Rikers or whatever facility they’re at, they’ll already be dressed. Taking 40 minutes to get dressed is absurd.”

Ransom and Freeman are both charged with second-degree murder and related crimes in the Feb. 12 hold-up that ended in Simonsen’s death.

Authorities have said Simonsen was accidentally shot by a fellow officer when Ransom pointed a fake gun at cops who responded to the robbery of the T-Mobile store at 120th Street and Atlantic Avenue in Richmond Hill.

Ransom has a rap sheet listing more than two dozen arrests, and a history of bizarre behavior that includes lying about being a college student so he could land an internship in Brooklyn Supreme Court, where he was later slapped with restraining orders to stay away from two judges.

 

[The Bobster]

https://nypost.com/2019/10/06/caree...ly-fire-tragedy-feels-no-remorse-blames-cops/

Career criminal in NYPD friendly-fire tragedy feels no remorse, blames cops
By Khristina Narizhnaya
October 6, 2019 | 9:44pm | Updated

Christopher Ransom
Facebook


The man charged with murder for the friendly fire death of NYPD Det. Brian Simonsen defiantly insisted that the cop’s killing was not his fault.

“It’s very sad that Detective Simonsen lost his life, but I take no accountability for the death,” Christopher Ransom, 28, told The Post in an exclusive interview on Rikers Island on Thursday — where he’s being held awaiting trial on charges including Simonsen’s murder.

“The accountability should be with the officers who shot [42] times,” said Ransom. “They’re using me as a scapegoat. They’re pointing their fingers at me, but I’m pointing my finger at them.”

Ransom even put a measure of the blame on the hero cop, asking why Simonsen — who was working on his day off to crack a robbery pattern when he answered the fatal call — wasn’t wearing a bulletproof vest.

The remorseless remarks came shortly after Simonsen’s widow, Leanne, told The Post that “trigger-happy” cops contributed to the February tragedy — but stressed, “It’s the perp’s fault no matter what.”

Ransom said that he’d seen the widow’s interview, and agreed with her assessment that the NYPD needs more rigorous training to prevent deaths like Simonsen’s and that of Bronx cop Brian Mulkeen, who was killed by friendly-fire last month.

“I agree with her, they need more training,” said Ransom, bizarrely adding that he one day hopes to aid the devastated family. “I’m very sorry about what happened to Detective Simonsen and his family. I’m going to spend my freedom trying to help them.”

Ransom also said that he intends to fight against the felony murder law, which allows prosecutors to charge defendants with murder when a death stems from another illegal action they take — in his case the alleged robbery.

“I’m going to work to get rid of the felony murder law,” said Ransom. “It’s very unfair. You didn’t kill, but you are still a killer.”
see also
De Blasio challenges NYPD widow over claim ‘trigger-happy’ cops cause friendly fire

Ransom was carrying an imitation handgun the night he and alleged accomplice Jagger Freeman went to the T-Mobile store at the corner of Atlantic Avenue and 120th Street in Richmond Hill — and he insists to this day the whole thing was a practical joke gone horribly wrong.

“It was a prank gone wrong. It was just a prank,” insisted Ransom.

“I’m not a career criminal,” said Ransom, who has 25 prior arrests, including for impersonating a police officer. “I’m a comedian.”

But Ransom’s idea of comedy allegedly involved binding two workers in the back of the store — emerging from the shop dry-firing the imitation gun and spooking the small army of cops that had assembled outside.

Seven officers fired a total of 42 shots in the span of a minute.

Simonsen, 42, was killed with a single NYPD bullet to the chest. Ransom was struck eight times, but lived.

“They should be shooting to bring down, not shooting to kill,” Ransom groused of the cops. “What am I, a bear or a lion? They were trying to murder me. All they see is a black kid with what they think is a gun and they shoot.”

But all told, Ransom said he’s grateful.

“I’m lucky to be alive, although I’m here. … The other guy didn’t make it,” he said, referring to Antonio Lavance Williams, the gangbanging ex-con who was killed alongside Mulkeen as they wrestled for control of the cop’s service weapon.

Ransom — who, along with Freeman, has pleaded not guilty — said that he is spending his time behind bars penning his autobiography, focusing on how his youth with a drug-addicted mother and his bipolar disorder left him in search of “love and attention and admiration from others.”

He said the working title of the book is “Friendly Fire.”

 

[The Bobster]

Man behind Queens robbery that left detective dead will serve 33 years

The man responsible for a Queens phone store robbery that left an NYPD detective dead after he was struck by other officers’ bullets will serve 33 years in prison, officials said.

nypost.com

Man behind Queens robbery that left detective dead will serve 33 years​

By
Tina Moore


October 20, 2021 3:54pm
Updated

Christopher Ransom pleaded guilty to aggravated manslaughter and to a robbery charge. Ellis Kaplan

​

The man responsible for a Queens phone store robbery that left an NYPD detective dead after he was struck by bullets fired by other police officers will serve 33 years in prison, officials said Wednesday.
Christopher Ransom, 30, pleaded guilty to aggravated manslaughter for the 2019 death of NYPD Detective Brian Simonsen, Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said in a statement.
He also pleaded guilty to the Richmond Hill phone store robbery, where he pointed a fake gun at responding police officers.
“The defendant set in motion a terrible chain of events that began with a robbery and ended in a spray of bullets when Ransom pointed what appeared to be a deadly firearm toward police officers,” Katz said.
“The defendant was repeatedly told to lower his weapon but did not do so,” Katz said. “The heartbreaking result was the loss of Detective Simonsen’s life and Sergeant Matthew Gorman being shot in the leg.”
NYPD Detective Brian Simonsen was shot and killed in 2019.NYPD via AP
Katz said Ransom is expected to be sentenced to 33 years in prison at a hearing on Nov. 17, adding that she hoped the sentence would bring Simonsen’s family a “measure of closure.”
Simonsen, 42, was killed in a volley of nearly four dozen bullets fired at Ransom, a career criminal, after police responded to reports of a robbery at a T-Mobile store on 120th Street on Feb. 12, 2019.
The NYPD veteran was killed by a single bullet to the chest. Ransom was shot eight times but survived.
Jagger Freeman enters a hearing in Queens in 2019.Ellis Kaplan
Jagger Freeman, 25, allegedly served as a lookout during the deadly encounter.
Gorman was seriously injured by a bullet to his left leg.
Detectives’ Endowment Association president Paul DiGiacomo pointed out that Simonsen had attended a union meeting that day and did not have to report to duty, but responded to the cellphone store anyway.
In this image taken from surveillance video, Christopher Ransom is shown robbing the T-Mobile store on Jan. 19, 2019.NYPD via AP
“Detective Brian Simonsen was a highly dedicated cop and DEA Delegate at work on his day off trying to bring justice to a crime victim,” he said.
“If not for Ransom committing a robbery that day in Queens, Brian would be with us today,” he said. “For that, Ransom should spend every waking moment of the next 33 years in jail thinking about the grief he caused so many.”