An ex-con who saw his son killed last year in a firefight with two off-duty cops — and then picked up his son’s gun and started blasting away at the officers — is now whining that he’s a victim.
On Aug. 29, 2021, Michael Rosado was firing shots at a man in the area of Valentine Avenue and East 180th Street in the Bronx, when the cops intervened and took down the gunman.
Rafael Rosado, 45, of the Bronx then picked up his son’s weapon and continued firing at police. Neither officer was hit and Rosado was arrested at the scene.
Rosado, who had 28 prior arrests, has been at Rikers Island awaiting trial since the shooting on an attempted murder charge.
But the jail is apparently too much for Rosado. On Monday, Rosado’s defense attorney, Pamela Itzkowitch, submitted a petition in Bronx Supreme Court demanding his immediate release.
Rosado has not been able to properly grieve his son, and conditions inside Rikers have made him suicidal, the petition argues.
Rosado has tried to commit suicide twice inside the jail, once in March by hanging himself in his cell, and last month, while on suicide watch, by taking unidentified pills he found inside his housing unit, according to the petition.
Read Related Also: North Korea tests high-thrust solid-fuel engine for apparent ICBM development
It also noted that 12 Rikers inmates have committed suicide since January 2021.
The “retraumatizing and chaotic environment” of Rikers doesn’t help with Rosado’s ability to deal with trauma and grief, psychologist Alexandra Riggs Garcia-Mansilla claimed in the petition.
“Mr. Rosado merely wishes to go home, to grieve with his family, to visit his son’s final resting place, and to fight his case from a place where he is safe,” the petition states.
Joseph Giacalone, a John Jay Criminal Justice professor and former NYPD sergeant, said Rosado’s lawyers “are trying to take advantage of the weaknesses in the criminal justice system.”
He added, Rosado “picks up a gun and starts shooting at the cops. What do you think he would do against the average citizen if he’s willing to do this to the police? It would probably be in everybody’s best interest if he stays behind bars in Rikers.”
