NYC Lawyers Say Bodega Clerk Who Stabbed Brute in Self-Defense Went Overboard

He should have just poked him with the knife. There was no need for a full stabbing.

After all, he’s black. He deserves special treatment because he was once enslaved.

New York Post:

City lawyers insist the Harlem bodega clerk who fatally stabbed a violent customer went overboard during the life-and-death struggle – contradicting Mayor Adams’ declaration that he was simply defending himself.

Jose Alba, 61, made international headlines in July 2022 when he was attacked by Austin Simon in a dispute over chips.

During the struggle, Alba grabbed a knife and fatally stabbed Simon, 35.

He was arrested and locked up on Rikers on a second-degree murder charge, which was dropped following an outpouring of support across the city.

In September, Alba filed a wrongful arrest suit against the city seeking unspecified damages.

He has argued in court papers there was zero reason to arrest and prosecute him over Simon’s death because he was acting in self-defense.

“Considering the events that led to plaintiff stabbing Mr. Simon, that is an extreme position,” the city’s lawyers wrote in Manhattan federal court papers filed this month to get the case tossed. “Mr. Simon pushed [Alba] once and grabbed him by the collar to escort him outside for the expressed purpose of having him apologize to” his girlfriend, they continued.

“While the District Attorney’s Office found it would be difficult to disprove justification beyond a reasonable doubt, it was not unreasonable to arrest plaintiff in the first place.”

It was totally unreasonable.

They had the video of the event.

It was absolute self-defense.