The Florida woman charged with hate crimes for pepper spraying a group of Asian women in New York last month would be released from Rikers Island after her bail was canceled.
Madeline Barker, 47, of Merritt Island, Florida, was arrested nearly a week after the alleged incident at the intersection of 14th Street and 9th Avenue in Chelsea on June 11.
One of the alleged victims, Nicole, told NextShark it all started when she and her friends, who were walking around the neighborhood, stopped to rest near a woman in pink, who then allegedly accused them of “trying to harass me”.
Nicole said the woman told them “Go back to the country you came from” and “You don’t belong here”.
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Videos taken with cellphones during the incident show the woman in question holding what appears to be pepper spray. She seemingly threatens those around her, who in turn try to keep their distance.
Barker, detained since June 17, admitted to being the woman involved in the incident. She was later charged on eight counts of third-degree assault as a hate crime, as well as four counts of second-degree aggravated harassment, which is a hate crime misdemeanor.
However, she is now expected to be released after being held on $20,000 bond. On Wednesday, Manhattan Supreme Court Judge Michele Rodney approved a new bail request offered by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office and Barker’s defense attorneys, according to the New York Post.
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Barker would be placed under The Women’s Project (TWP), a community that seeks to permanently reduce the number of women in city jails and state prisons. According to its website, TWP is part of a larger partnership between nonprofits Wildcat and The Fedcap Group, public defenders and district attorneys’ offices in Manhattan, Brooklyn and the Bronx.
While released, Barker will be under strict electronic monitoring. She will also receive “supportive housing so her location is known, regular check-ins, and accompaniment to each court appearance to ensure her return to court,” according to Bragg’s office.
It is not known if Barker has ever been released. Although she admitted to being involved in the incident, she has pleaded not guilty and will return to court on October 27.
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Featured image via Nicole for NextShark
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