Adams blames broken system for accused NYC serial stabber Ramon Riveras early release one month before fatal spree
Mayor Eric Adams acknowledged Tuesday that the city bears responsibility for a madman’s stabbing spree that left three New Yorkers dead — but said the mental health and justice system failures go deeper.A measured Adams called for Washington, Albany and the City Council to take action and fix the “broken” mental health system that didn’t help the mentally ill Ramon Rivera, 51, before he allegedly randomly stabbed three people to death last week.“If we don’t do something about it, we could see incidents like this taking place,” Adams said during his weekly off-topic briefing at City Hall.“Can the city do more? You’re darn right we can,” he said.“But our federal government can do more, our state government can do more, our (City Council) partners across the hall can do more, we all could do more.”The mayor also gently swatted aside outrage over the early release of Rivera — a homeless man with a lengthy rap sheet — just a month before the Nov.
18 spree.He said a technicality had allowed Rivera’s “good time release,” despite his assault of a correction officer.
As Adams spoke, City Hall distributed a timeline of Rivera’s months-long stint in New York City’s jails, leading up to his ultimate release in October.Rivera, who has a long criminal history, was arrested in February on a burglary charge.In May, he assaulted a corrections officer in a Bellevue Hospital psych ward — an incident previously reported by The Post.Adams said because this assault unfolded before Rivera was sentenced to 364 days in jail in the burglary case, it actually couldn’t be used against him when officials tallied up deductions for his Oct.
17 release on good behavior.He also noted that prosecutors in Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office had requested — and a judge granted — that Rivera’s 90-day sentence for assaulting the guard be served at the same time as his punishment for the burglary conviction.City Hall officials said they�...