NYC Killing Spurs Probe Into Psychiatric Discharge

NEW YORK, NY — Mayor Zohran Mamdani ordered an immediate investigation into how NYC Health + Hospitals handled a psychiatric evaluation tied to the fatal assault of a 76-year-old man in Chelsea hours after the suspect left Bellevue Hospital on Friday.

Police said Ross Falzone, 76, died after a 32-year-old man allegedly pushed him down a flight of stairs Thursday evening in Chelsea.

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The suspect, now in custody, had been taken earlier that afternoon by New York City police officers to Bellevue for a psychiatric evaluation, according to preliminary information released by City Hall.

Officials said the man remained at the hospital for about an hour before staff discharged him. About five hours later, investigators say, he attacked Falzone.

“New Yorkers deserve answers,” Mamdani wrote in a statement. “That is why I’ve directed NYC Health + Hospitals to conduct both an immediate investigation on what steps should have been taken to prevent this tragedy and a comprehensive review of their psychiatric evaluation and discharge protocols.”

Mamdani directed NYC Health + Hospitals to launch a root cause analysis and a full internal review of Bellevue’s psychiatric evaluation procedures, focusing on psychosis assessments, crisis evaluations and discharge decisions.

The Mayor also asked the New York State Department of Health to open a separate investigation into the hospital’s handling of the case and examine whether staff followed existing procedures.

State health officials agreed to begin an immediate review of psychiatric evaluation and discharge practices across the city’s public hospital system, according to the mayor’s office. Officials will remain on-site during the investigation and work with hospital leadership on any corrective actions.

Investigators have not released additional details about the alleged assault or the suspect’s psychiatric history.