Homeless Man In Deadly Subway Stabbing Freed Without Bail

The homeless man suspected of killing a father of two on the Brooklyn L train was released without bond after being involved in a similar incident on another subway line, The Post has discovered.

On Thursday, Alvin Charles, 43, was ordered detained without bail for the murder of 43-year-old Tommy Bailey, which is said to have occurred on September 30.

According to court documents, Charles was arrested in July 2021 for his alleged involvement in another subway fight, this time in April of that year.

Crown attorneys in Brooklyn requested Charles be kept in lieu of $50,000 bail, but Judge Jessica G. Earle-Gargan instead released him on supervised release. Soon into this month, he was scheduled to make an appearance in court related to the lawsuit.

“If they [had] done anything about it back then, Tommy would have been alive and we wouldn’t be talking right now,” said Jaylin, Bailey’s 18-year-old neighbor in Canarsie. They are responsible for his death. Absence of good judgment. So sorry to hear that.

According to court filings and law enforcement, Charles is suspected of throwing a can of Coke at the victim last year, at which point Charles allegedly produced a knife and stabbed the guy in the abdomen and upper left arm.

According to the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office, he was re-indicted this year and smacked with the greater charge of attempted murder for the same event, for which he was first charged with assault, attempted assault, threatening, and unlawful possession of a firearm.

Charles, still out on supervised release despite the severe charges, is accused of attacking Bailey near the Atlantic Avenue station in East New York at around 9 p.m. last Friday.

The NYPD claims that after an altercation between the two men, Charles pulled out a knife and stabbed Bailey in the neck before running away.

According to police sources, Charles shouted anti-cop statements, prompting Bailey to approach him, which led to the deadly brawl.

Bailey, a dedicated steamfitter who was known throughout his community for his athleticism, passed away at Brookdale University Hospital Medical Center.

“He protected me,” Jaylin said. He acted as both my mentor and my coach. His constant vigilance over my actions ensured that I never strayed from the straight and narrow.

Once the accusations were upgraded to attempted murder in March, it is unclear if prosecutors in the case from last year repeated their plea for bail. In July, Brooklyn Judge Matthew Sciarrino presided over Charles’ arraignment on the fresh charge.

When Charles was first arraigned on the assault charge, a spokeswoman for the Brooklyn DA’s office said prosecutors requested bail “at the right time,” but did not elaborate.

The bond should not have been increased, according to famed New York City attorney Jason Goldman, since the charges were only “slightly upgraded” from a class C to a class B felony.

Goldman argued that a judge would not have granted bail again because of the defendant’s lengthy court appearances and the very little increase in charges. Accordingly, “this is most likely why the DA didn’t reapply.”

Ex-Manhattan prosecutor turned defense attorney Mark Bederow disagreed, arguing that the attempted murder allegation included in the new indictment should have resulted in a greater bond amount.

Bail would be justified in the case of a subway stabbing, Bederow added. And the fact that he was first arrested on a lower charge based on a complaint and subsequently indicted by a grand jury on a greater charge would likely necessitate increased bail.

A former NYPD sergeant and current professor at CUNY’s John Jay College of Criminal Justice, Joseph Giacalone, agreed that greater bail was necessary in this instance.

As example, “So you can stab someone in 2021 and be out on the streets to stab somebody else a year or less later?” A rant from Giacalone. “I can’t see how it could possibly be rational.”