Man Busted With Gun Inside Elite Hospital on New York City’s Tony Upper East Side
New York law allows for ‘enhanced charges’ for accused criminals who bring a gun into a protected area such as a school, church or hospital.
Panic struck the corridors of Lenox Hill Hospital on Manhattan’s tony Upper East Side after a 911 call was placed from there on Saturday claiming a man flashed a concealed gun and loaded magazine, the Sun has learned.
At around 9:30 p.m., Jervey Moore, 48, was admitted to the storied hospital, located on East 77th Street and Lexington Avenue, when a witness claims to have seen him tease the grip of a what appeared to be a pistol pocketed inside the right side of his jacket, according to the criminal complaint.
An NYPD officer confronted Mr. Moore and after quizzing and frisking him — plucked a Walther PK380 out of his jacket, the papers say.
The cop also lifted from the man’s front jacket pocket a magazine “containing six cartridges”.
It’s unclear why Mr. Moore had ventured into the hospital with the alleged gun or what his intentions allegedly were. No threats appeared to have been made.
The Sun’s attempts to reach both Mr. Moore and his defense attorney were unsuccessful.
When reached by the Sun, a hospital spokeswoman referred all questions to the NYPD.
Cops confirmed the incident’s basics and that the man was inside Lenox Hill Hospital, where celebrities like Beyonce and Chelsea Clinton have given birth.
They also noted that Moore, who hails from the Bronx, was disarmed and arrested without incident.
Days later, Manhattan prosecutors brought criminal firearms and weapons possession charges against Mr. Moore.
Additionally, it appears they tacked on a lesser applied charge of possession of a firearm, rifle, or shotgun in a sensitive location. The “sensitive location” weapons law is a carve-out in the state penal law that mandates enhanced consequences for a suspect bringing a weapon into designated areas like a church, a government building, a park, a daycare, and also hospitals.
The accused pleaded not guilty when he was arraigned on Tuesday. During that appearance, the judge didn’t side with prosecutors’ request to impose a $35,000 bail. Rather, Mr. Moore was set loose with a supervised release contingency and an order of protection. He’s due back in court on June 2.
