A 27-year-old aspiring YouTube creator, Gusmane Coulibaly was charged on Thursday, February 26 for throwing snow and ice at New York City police officers in Washington Square Park.
Although the attack sent two officers to the hospital, he appeared in court and was charged only a minor offence, despite initially facing more serious charges including assault on a police officer, obstruction of governmental administration and disorderly conduct.
During the incident, some people in the crowd also yelled offensive language at the police while officers tried to move through the area.
This comes after New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani stated that those involved in the snowball attack should not face charges which led to criticism from several police leaders.
Police Benevolent Association (PBA) President Patrick Hendry said in a statement, noting, "The mayor has sent a disgraceful message to every police officer who serves this city. The mayor's response is a complete failure of leadership."
However, at a Thursday evening hearing, the Manhattan District Attorney decided not to pursue the assault-on-an-officer charge against Coulibaly.
The remaining charges were reduced to misdemeanour obstruction of governmental administration and second-degree harassment.
Judge Michelle Weber, though, ruled that the YouTuber's involvement "showed a complete lack of judgment," but still she granted Coulibaly supervised release.
