Term Paper

Robert O’Hare
CRJ 102-Crimonology
Professor Satenik Margaryan, Ph.D.
Term Paper-Step One: The Case
May 5, 2024
STEP ONE: THE CASE
On Saturday, January 15, 2022, at approximately 9:40 a.m., at the West 42 Street and Times Square Subway Station located in the Borough of Manhattan, within New York City, the victim in this case, Ms. Michelle Alyssa Go, a forty year old Female/Asian, was pushed from a southbound subway platform into the path of an oncoming New York City Subway ‘R’ Train by an unidentified male, who fled the scene, causing her death. This male, initially identified as Mr. Simon Martial, and then later correctly identified as Mr. Martial Simon, at 9:53 a.m., walked into the New York Police Department (N.Y.P.D.) Transit District # 2 Station House, located at Canal Street, and informed Officers there that he had pushed a woman in front of a train. Mr. Simon was soon transported to the N.Y.P.D. Midtown Precinct South Detective Squad. Mr. Simon made statements during his custody admitting to the fact that he had pushed Ms. Go in front of the train including, “Yeah because I’m God. Yes I did. I’m God. I can do it. “She stole my f-ing jacket, that’s why,” (Celona) when asked about his motive.
The N.Y.P.D. Police Commissioner, Keechant Sewell, advised members of the press that, “This incident was unprovoked and the victim does not appear to have any interaction with the subject.” (Celona) Assistant Chief Jason Wilcox, of the N.Y.P.D. Detective Bureau, further advised, “The suspect had first approached another woman, who was not Asian who became alarmed and moved away. She feels that he was about to physically push her onto the train. As she’s walking away, “she witnesses the crime where he pushes our other victim in front of the train.” (Celona)
Ms. Go was “. . . a senior manager at the top consulting firm Deloitte and volunteered as an advocate for the homeless.” (Kessen) Michelle Go was a graduate of New York University’s Stern School of Business. She volunteered at the New York Junior League “. . . where she helped those struggling to get and stay on their feet, including the homeless” according to a Junior League representative. (Lapin)
On Friday, January 19, 2022, Mr. Simon, a 61 year old Male/Black, was arraigned in front of Manhattan Criminal Court Judge Paul McDonnell and charged with Second Degree Murder. The prosecutor, Hunter Carrell, stated to Judge McDonnell that Mr. Simon “admitted his guilt in three separate conversations with transit officers, detectives, and Assistant District Attorneys.” “In addition, video places the defendant on the scene, and an eyewitness identified the defendant in a double-blind photo array.” (Lapin) The hearing was held virtually while Mr. Simon was at Bellevue Hospital.3 The Criminal Complaint stated that Mr. Simon, “used both hands to push the victim.” (Rovini) Judge McDonnell ordered that Mr. Simon be held and submit to a psychiatric evaluation. Mr. Simon’s next court date was scheduled for Friday, February 23, 2022. Mr. Simon is being represented by Mr. H. Mitchell Schulman, an attorney from the New York County Defender Services.
At the time of the incident, Mr. Simon, was on Parole for a 2019 Attempted Robbery and was wanted on a Parole Warrant for violation of the conditions of his Parole following his release from prison in August 2021.
During March 2022, Mr. Simon was “. . .declared unfit to stand trial by psychiatrists at Bellevue Hospital.” (Wallace) The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office (D.A.N.Y.) had requested time to review the case. On Tuesday, April 19, 2022, D.A.N.Y. “. . .decided not to contest the psychiatrists’ finding and Simon was remanded to the custody of the Department of Mental Health and Hygiene until he is fit to stand trial.” (Wallace)
According to Mr. Simon’s attorney, he “. . . expected his client to be transported to either Kirby Forensic Psychiatric Center on Wards Island off Manhattan or to Mid Hudson Forensic Psychiatric Center, about 65 miles or an hour’s drive northwest of New York City.” (Wallace)
The New York Times reported that in 2017 Mr. Simon, “. . . told a psychiatrist at a state-run hospital it was only a matter of time before he shoved a woman onto train tracks.” (Wallace)
Mr. Simon’s family has said, “. . . he suffered from schizophrenia and has been in and out of mental health facilities for over 20 years.” (DeGregory)






STEP TWO: THE THEORY
While the case of Mr. Simon is terrible, it also makes someone think why did this happen? What caused Mr. Simon to push Ms. Go to her death?
I believe the best criminal theory that fits this case is Biosocial. I feel this best covers my belief that not only was Mr. Simon predisposed chemically to commit criminal acts but also that there was something that kicked it in gear during his lifetime. I feel a biologically based criminal theory also reflects not only what was going on in his mind at the time of his crime but also the likelihood that there was some sort of use of both narcotics and alcohol which would have certainly compounded what was going on not only within Mr. Simon’s body but also within his mind and body.
Based upon Unit 5 in this class, Mr. James Q. Wilson and Mr. Richard Herrnstein in 1985 renewed interest in this theory. They held that genetics and social forces can be a root cause of criminality. They believed that “neither biology nor environment alone is sufficient to explain why some people commit crimes and others do not, or why some people commit more crimes than others.” (Barlow)
Wilson and Herrstein “. . . infer the existence of biological influences from two observations.” (Barlow) They looked at street crimes and the fact that they are comitted by “. . . young males who are disproportionately African American and possibly of lower intelligence.” (Barlow) They also observed that “. . . Males are up to fifty times more likely to commit crimes than females.” (Barlow) They both also were aware of research “. . . suggesting something biologically distinctive about the “average offender.”
STEP THREE: POLICY ANALYSIS FOR THE CASE AND THE THEORY
In the article cited by Anacristina Bedoya and Jill Portnoy, they remind the readers that while “. . .biological features of criminal behaviour is interesting and meaningful work, the policy implications of biosocial criminology are muddied and raise potential moral and ethical concerns.” “Many fear that eugenics” would be the proposed answer. Bedoya and Portnoy instead focus on more modern methods “. . . including nutrition and hormones, genetics, psychophysiology, brain imaging, and neuroimaging” and their respective policy implacations.
To begin with the area of nutrition, what humans consume could impact upon their behavior. The authors go on to cite at least three (3) studies including what I found to be the most interesting one. They cited a Mauritius Child Health Study which “found that poor nutrition at age three years predicted antisocial behavior at 17 years (Raine et al., 2003.) Therefore, in order to potentially combat this belief, the policy would be to ensure that children receive proper not only sufficient amounts of food but also healthy foods of a great nutritional value.
In so far as hormones, the writers cite research on testosterone being the most studied. Amongst the ideas discussed was “individuals who had low levels of testosterone could be a protective factor against antisocial behavior” versus “individuals with high levels of testosterone and high parental rejection reported antisocial behavior.” The authors offer several policies but offer an alternative which includes “. . . behavorial or psychosocial interventions that may affect hormone levels, such as mindfulness meditation or cognitive behavioral therapy” while advising furher research on hormones would be required.

When discussing genetics, the article gets very in depth pertaining to two (2) different and often cited studies. The end conclusion, besides behaviors not being linked to a sole gene, is that “. . . there may be multiple genetic pathways” “. . . to explain why antisocial behavior develops and persists.” The policy in short is “. . .the extent to which genetic testing will be used to make decisions surrounding antisociality, justice and crimes is unknown.”
As we continue to psychophysiology, the author’s reference several studies but offer how such studies “. . .have given insight into how environmental conditions can afffect a child’s nervous system which can in turn impact behavior.” The policy would be to “. . . take into consideration the interactions between psychophysiological risk factors and the environment” with a special focus on the youth. They offered as a solution exercise programs to assist in both raising the heart rate and that it “. . .may help reduce antisocial behavio in children with low resting heart rate.”
The authors do note that Traumatic Brain Injury (T.B.I.) is a medical diagnosis that is over represented among the justice-involved population. As they continue on about T.B.I., what becomes clear is the policy that perhaps there is a need to increase neurorehabilitation after a brain injury. They also cite the need to “. . .educate parents and children on the behavioral risks, in addition to the medical risks, of sustaining a head injury.” The author’s offer that such individuals should be able to receive “. . . psychological and/or psychiatric help early on.”
The last portion offered is Neuroimaging which is defined as “Structural brain imaging” “. . . to explore correlates of antisocial behavior.” The author’s advise that the one brain region, the amygdala, are “. . .almond shaped brain structures on either brain hemisphere that contribute to emotions, including fear.” The authors advise of the “small sample sizes due to cost” and other factors. The authors offer that “despite these limitations, neuroimaging has implications for policy and practice reducing antisocial behavior.” In conclusion, the author’s offer the possibility that with more research in this area that it could possibly be as successful in reducing antisocial behavior as it has been in treating depression.
So, the same way the Bioscoial Theory fits the above case cited, which involves mutiple underlying causes, so does the policy with multiple possible answers and treatments.












BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Barlow, H. D., & Kauzlarich, D. (2010). Explaining crime : A primer in criminological theory. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Incorporated, Chapter 3, Page # 42-43.
Bedoya, A.C., Portnor, J. (2023). Biosocial Criminology: History, Theory, Research Evidence, and Policy, Victims and Offenders, 18:8, 1599-1629.
https://doi.org/10.1080/15564886.2022.2133035.
Celona, Larry, et al., “Deranged man pushes Asian woman to death at Times Square subway station,” New York Post, Published January 15, 2022, Updated January 20, 2022, 12:19 P.M. ET, Accessed March 3, 2024.
https://nypost.com/2022/01/15/woman-pushed-to-her-death-at-times-square-subway-station/?utm_source=url_sitebuttons&utm_medium=site%20buttons&utm_campaign=site%20buttons
DeGregory, Priscilla, “Martial Simon sent to mental facility over Michelle Go’s fatal subway shove,” New York Post, Published April 20, 2022, 7:10 P.M. ET, Accessed March 3, 2024.
https://nypost.com/2022/04/20/martial-simon-sent-to-mental-facility-over-michelle-gos-fatal-subway-shove/?utm_source=url_sitebuttons&utm_medium=site%20buttons&utm_campaign=site%20buttons



Kessen, Ben, et al., “What we know about Times Square subway shove victim Michelle Go,” New York Post, Published January 16, 2022, Updated January 17, 2022, 9:19 A.M. ET, Accessed March 3, 2024.
https://nypost.com/2022/01/16/what-we-know-about-times-square-subway-shove-victim-michelle-go/?utm_source=url_sitebuttons&utm_medium=site%20buttons&utm_campaign=site%20buttons
Lapin, Tamar, et al., ‘Judge orders psych evaluation for Times Square subway shove suspect,” New York Post, Published January 19, 2022, Updated January 19, 2022, 2xx25 P.M. ET, Accessed March 3, 2024.
https://nypost.com/2022/01/19/judge-orders-psych-evaluation-for-fatal-subway-shove-suspect/?utm_source=url_sitebuttons&utm_medium=site%20buttons&utm_campaign=site%20buttons
Rovini, Rana, “DA: Man in Woman’s Deadly Times Square Subway Shove Used Both Hands to Kill Her,” “A 40-year-old Asian woman was pushed to her death in what appears to have been an unprovoked attack in Times Square over the weekend,” News 4 New York, Manhattan, Published January 19, 2022, Updated January 19, 2022, 9:55 P.M., Accessed March 3, 2024.
https://www.bing.com/ck/a?!&&p=2ccb5e1b6a4bbf3fJmltdHM9MTcwOTQyNDAwMCZpZ3VpZD0zMGI3YmUxNi05ZmM0LTY0YzItMjliNy1iMmQ5OWU0YzY1MDAmaW5zaWQ9NTI3MA&ptn=3&ver=2&hsh=3&fclid=30b7be16-9fc4-64c2-29b7-b2d99e4c6500&psq=woman+pushed+in+front+of+train+in+times+square&u=a1aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubmJjbmV3eW9yay5jb20vbmV3cy9sb2NhbC9jcmltZS1hbmQtY291cnRzL21pY2hlbGxlLWdvLXRpbWVzLXNxdWFyZS1zdWJ3YXktc2hvdmUtZGVhdGgtdHJhaW4tbWFydGlhbC1zaW1vbi8zNTAzMDY3Lw&ntb=1
Wallace, Danielle, “Michelle Alyssa Go Murder: Alleged NYC Subway Shover Mentally Unfit for Trial,” Fox News, April 20, 2022, 8:55 A.M. EDT, Accessed March 3, 2024.
https://www.foxnews.com/us/nyc-subway-shoving-suspect-michelle-alyssa-go-murder-mentally-unfit-trial-suspended-psychiatric-custody.print