Upper East Side shooting: Azsia Johnson reported domestic violence but police ‘failed’ her, says mom

Young mother was pushing stroller

Eric Adams blames 'oversaturation of guns' after 20-year-old mother shot dead

Azsia Johnson, the young mother who was shot and killed while pushing her three-month-old baby in a stroller in New York City, had reportedly made multiple domestic violence complaints to police prior to her execution-style murder.

Ms Johnson’s heartbroken mother accused the police of failing to protect her 20-year-old daughter from her allegedly abusive ex-boyfriend, with investigators now searching for the baby’s father as a person of interest in her slaying.

Ms Johnson – an aspiring nurse and mother-of-two – was walking with her infant near 95th Street and Lexington Avenue in Manhattan’s Upper East Side at around 8.30pm on Wednesday night.

Police said a hooded gunman approached from behind and fired a single shot to her head at point-blank range, killing her. The baby was unharmed.

The victim’s family reportedly told investigators that Ms Johnson was planning to meet the baby’s father that night.

The NYPD has refused to confirm the baby’s father is the person of interest but said investigators are exploring domestic violence as a possible motive.

The shooting unfolded in one of the city’s most affluent neighbourhoods and just blocks from a playground, just days after the Supreme Court loosened US gun laws.

Key points

• Azsia Johnson had filed at least two domestic violence complaints
• Victim’s mother urges killer to ‘turn yourself in'
• Vigil planned for Thursday night in honour of Azsia Johnson
• Baby’s father named as person of interest, say reports
• Victim remembered as aspiring nurse and ‘best’ mother to two children
• Victim planned to meet baby’s father night she was killed, says police source

[1 July 2022 03:00 · Rachel Sharp]

ICYMI: Victim identified by family as aspiring nurse and domestic violence victim

An aspiring nurse and young mother-of-two was identified as the woman who was shot dead at point-blank range while pushing her baby in a stroller through Manhattan.

Azsia Johnson, 20, died on Wednesday night after she reportedly planned to meet up with the father of her three-month-old infant.

Ms Johnson’s mother Lisa Desort said her daughter had been the victim of domestic violence by her baby’s father and that the family had filed multiple reports to the police – but that authorities had failed to protect her.

The Independent’s Rachel Sharp has the full story:

[1 July 2022 04:00 · Rachel Sharp]

Upper East Side is one of most affluent neighbourhoods

The Upper East Side is one of the most affluent and safest neighbourhoods in New York City.

Based in Manhattan, the average house price is $1.3m – almost four times the New York average of $325,000, according to CensusReporter.

The average income per capita is $117,359, almost three times the New York average of $40,898.

As well as being home to some of the richest New Yorkers, it is also home to the mayor’s official residence of Gracie Mansion.

Crime is low compared to other parts of the city, with the 19th police precinct recording just two murders in 2021 while Azsia Johnson’s murder marks the first in the area this year.

[1 July 2022 06:00 · Rachel Sharp]

Mayor Eric Adams announces new unit to tackle gun violence

New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced the launch of a new unit to tackle gun violence on Thursday – just hours after the fatal shooting of 20-year-old Azsia Johnson.

The DNA Gun Crimes Unit will speed up gun crime analysis, with forensic experts able to provide DNA results in half the current time of 60 days.

A staggering $2.5m is being channeled into the new unit, which will be overseen by New York City’s medical examiner’s office.

In a press conference announcing the unit’s launch, the mayor said it will play a “major role” in tackling gun violence in the city.

“This is a central part of our apparatus in fighting gun violence and sometime we missed this piece but without this piece, we can’t take guns off our streets and deal with people who are dangerous to our city,” he said.

[1 July 2022 07:00 · Rachel Sharp]

Data shows spike in crimes in NYC but shootings down

The latest data released by the NYPD shows that crime has surged in New York City in the last year but that the number of shootings has actually fallen.

A total of 58,417 crimes were reported across the five boroughs in the year ending 26 June 2022 – a rise of 37.8 percent from 42,383 crimes reported in the same period in 2021.

However the number of shootings is down by 12.1 percent from 710 to 624 in the same timeframe.

The number of shooting victims has also fallen by 8.6 percent in the last year from 817 in 2021 to 747 in 2022.

[1 July 2022 08:00 · Sravasti Dasgupta]

NYC mayor blames blames 'oversaturation of guns'

New York mayor Eric Adams has blamed the “oversaturation of guns” after a 20-year-old mother was shot dead while she was pushing her three-month-old toddler in a stroller.

“It doesn’t matter if you are on the Upper East Side or East New York. The oversaturation of guns endangers people and repeatedly leaves our criminal justice system to continue actions like this,” Mr Adams said.

“It is what is making New York City Police Department and other law enforcement agencies here in New York and across the country difficult to fight this issue.”

Watch:

[1 July 2022 09:00 · Sravasti Dasgupta]

Police say baby's father is person of interest in fatal shooting of Azsia Johnson

The father of the three-month-old baby being pushed in a stroller when the child’s mother was killed in an execution-style shooting in Manhattan’s Upper East Side has been identified as a person of interest in the murder, according to police sources and family members.

The man – who has not been publicly named – had allegedly assaulted the victim while she was pregnant and she was unsure if she now wanted him in their child’s life, law enforcement officials said.

Rachel Sharp reports:

[1 July 2022 10:00 · Sravasti Dasgupta]

ICYMI: Domestic violence victim named as mother shot dead on Upper East Side

An aspiring nurse and young mother-of-two has been identified as the woman who was shot dead at point-blank range while pushing her baby in a stroller through the Upper East Side of Manhattan on Wednesday night.

Ms Johnson’s mother Lisa Desort said her daughter had been the victim of domestic violence at the hands of her baby’s father and that the family had filed multiple reports to the police – but that authorities had failed to protect her.

Rachel Sharp has more: