Domestic violence survivors who spoke with the Washington Free Beacon said New York Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani’s belief that police should not respond to incidents of domestic violence has the potential to cost women their lives.
Michelle Esquenazi, a bail bondswoman and founder of the Victims’ Rights Reform Council advocacy group, told the Free Beacon that she remembered vividly the day in 1993 when her then-husband attacked her and held their two-year-old child over a banister.
“I was a young girl with two little ones—three and two—and one in my belly, and I had to call 911, and the police came,” she said. “When [the New York Police Department] showed up that day, they were my saviors. They saved my life. They saved my children’s lives.”
As the Free Beacon reported last week, Mamdani said during a 2020 podcast appearance that he does not believe sending police is the appropriate response to incidents of domestic violence.
“If somebody is jaywalking, if somebody is surviving, going through domestic violence—there are so many different, different situations that would be far better handled by people trained to deal with those specific situations, as opposed to an individual with a gun,” he contended.
Bronx resident and community activist Lattina Brown (who has worked with Jim Walden, an independent candidate for New York mayor) told the Free Beacon that, like Esquenazi, she is a survivor of domestic violence who the New York Police Department saved from a dangerous situation.
“I was dating, in a relationship, with somebody who was quite abusive to me,” Brown said. “And you know, me being young, I didn’t understand what domestic violence was. It was physical.”
Brown told the Free Beacon that the NYPD is one of the reasons she is still here today.
“When I finally took that leap of faith to contact the NYPD, I must say that they were very responsive,” she said. “They were very helpful. I did not feel scared. I felt safe. They helped de-escalate the problem. They got me the resources that I needed, and to be honest with you, they helped save my life.”
Brown told the Free Beacon that, should Mamdani win and make good on his proposal, New York City will be a much more dangerous place.
“To hear this young man propose that the NYPD should not get involved in domestic violence situations, that’s very insulting, and it’s very scary, because without our NYPD, lives will be lost,” she said.
Domestic violence calls are among the most dangerous that New York City police officers respond to. An NYPD representative told the Free Beacon that the department responded to over 240,000 domestic violence calls in 2024 alone, with 113 officers injured in the process. The NYPD recovered 168 firearms responding to domestic violence-related incidents in that same year.
“Domestic violence incidents can escalate quickly, often resulting in dangerous situations that require immediate intervention,” the NYPD said in a statement to the Free Beacon. “By responding swiftly, law enforcement sends a clear message that abusive behavior will not be tolerated and that offenders will face legal consequences.”
Shandra Woworuntu, an advocate for survivors of domestic violence and a survivor herself, called the idea of stopping police from responding to incidents of domestic violence “ridiculous.”
“It means, in my opinion, he doesn’t like women,” she told the Free Beacon. “Most of the domestic violence threatens women.”
Woworuntu, originally from Indonesia, arrived in New York City in 2001 expecting to take a job at a hotel. She was instead forced into prostitution and trafficked across the East Coast, eventually telling her story to the BBC in 2016.
Woworuntu turned to activism after surviving her ordeal. Former New Jersey governor Chris Christie (R.) appointed her to the state’s Commission on Human Trafficking in 2013, and former president Barack Obama named her to the U.S. Advisory Council on Human Trafficking in 2015. She now lives in Queens and serves as CEO of Mentari, a nonprofit organization that provides assistance to victims of human trafficking.
Woworuntu told the Free Beacon that the NYPD saved her from an abusive husband in 2010.
“I experienced domestic violence from my husband many years ago, so I called law enforcement,” she recalled. “He wanted to kill me with a gun. Law enforcement came and arrested him.”
She added that she does not believe social workers will be able to respond to domestic violence incidents in the same way.
“We need to strengthen law enforcement,” Woworuntu said. “Social workers will not handle violence at home. … Violence with a weapon—could be a gun. Do you think social workers will handle that? I don’t think so. This will cost them their lives.”
Woworuntu told the Free Beacon that she does not plan to vote for Mamdani.
“In my opinion, he needs more experience,” she said. “I know young people like him, but we need people with more experience in city hall.”
Esquenazi, a longtime advocate for domestic violence survivors, had harsher words for Mamdani over his stance on policing.
“I’m certain that Mr. Mamdani has not witnessed domestic violence, because how else would he say something so incredibly stupid?” she asked. “Shame on him. Shame on him. That’s what I have to say to him. If he was in front of my face, that’s what I would tell him.”
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