Manhattan DA Drops Charges Against Photographer Alexa Wilkinson

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Wilkinson was arrested after photographing a protest on the New York Times’s headquarters.

Manhattan prosecutors have dropped their case in opposition to protest photographer Alexa Wilkinson, who was arrested and charged with a felony hate crime after documenting a protest on the New York Times headquarters final summer season.

Terra Brockman, Wilkinson’s lawyer on the Legal Aid Society, informed Hyperallergic that the cost was dropped yesterday, February 24, as a result of there was “insufficient evidence to prove the allegations beyond a reasonable doubt.” 

Wilkinson, who makes use of gender impartial pronouns, was charged in September, months after they photographed a gaggle dousing the New York Times in crimson paint in protest of the paper’s Gaza protection final July. 

In an e-mail, Wilkinson informed Hyperallergic the “egregious charges” almost triggered them to lose their day job. Police additionally seized their images gear, Wilkinson mentioned, together with their laptops, laborious drives, and digicam, which impacted their earnings.

“My housing security has been uncertain due to the trauma experienced by my neighbors and landlord,” Wilkinson mentioned. “This is mild, however, compared to the more than 300 Palestinian journalists Israel has killed for simply reporting on their own genocide.”

Manhattan prosecutors had accused Wilkinson of aggravated harassment within the second diploma for social media posts that criticized 11 New York Times workers members for alleged pro-Israel bias amid the Gaza genocide. 

The Manhattan District Attorney’s workplace confirmed to Hyperallergic that the case was dismissed “following a thorough investigation,” and declined to remark additional.

A grievance reviewed by Hyperallergic in September alleged that Wilkinson made “a threatening social media message targeting the Jewish editor of the New York Times” and referenced police physique digicam footage from the vandalism that allegedly confirmed Wilkinson holding a digicam. 

The DA’s workplace informed Hyperallergic in September that Wilkinson’s costs have been associated to social media posts, not their presence on the newspaper’s headquarters. However, Brockman, Wilkinson’s lawyer, recommended in any other case in an announcement shared with Hyperallergic.

“From the outset, we have said that Alexa is a respected photojournalist with no criminal record who did not participate in or encourage any unlawful activity,” Brockman mentioned, “and the allegation that documenting a protest could constitute a hate crime was wholly unfounded.”

The photographer mentioned they continue to be dedicated to working towards journalism.

“I look forward to continuing in my role as a photojournalist and a credentialed member of the New York City press,” Wilkinson mentioned.

The New York Times has not responded to Hyperallergic’s request for remark.