New York City Drops Charges against Rapper Accused of Shooting Police Officer By Brittany Bernstein
The New York City Law Department announced Friday that charges against a 16-year-old rapper accused of shooting a police officer have been dropped, saying the teen “cannot be prosecuted.”
Camrin Williams, also known by his stage name “C Blu,” allegedly shot a police officer who responded to reports of an unruly crowd at Lorillard Place near East 187th Street on January 18. The teen would not remove his hands from his pockets and a struggle with police ensued. A gun Williams was holding discharged during the struggle, striking and wounding 27-year-old NYPD officer Kaseem Pennant and hitting the teenager in the groin.
The law department did not say why the charges had been dropped, according to the New York Post.
“Just because the city cannot prosecute doesn’t mean this individual should have been carrying an illegal weapon — a weapon which contributed to both him and an officer being shot,” the Law Department said in a statement obtained by the outlet. “Pursuant to Family Court Law, the case is now sealed and we are unable to say more about the matter.”
Before the alleged shooting, Williams already had a gun possession arrest on his record from 2020 and was placed on probation as a juvenile in the case last year.
Williams made headlines in January when he used an advance on his contract with Interscope Records to post his $250,000 bond, according to the New York Post.
However, shortly after posting bail Williams found himself back in juvenile court. A family court hearing found he had violated probation in the earlier case by allegedly possessing a firearm and shooting Officer Pennant, the report added.
NYPD Police Benevolent Association President Patrick J. Lynch blasted the decision to drop the charges against Williams in the shooting case.
“This absurd decision should outrage every New Yorker who wants to get illegal guns off our streets,” he said, according to the report. “There is no dispute that this individual was caught carrying an illegal gun for the second time. If perps like this face absolutely no consequences, even after shooting a cop, we have to ask: Why bother sending us out to get the guns at all?”
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