The prosecutor in New York City may be ready to throw the book at Charles Foehner, for killing the mugger who attacked him in Queens, but the dead man’s relative isn’t holding it against him. Stephen Gonzalez might have done the same thing if he was in Foehner’s shoes. Cody Gonzalez may be related to Stephan by marriage but Cody also “had a lengthy history of mental illness.” One which “the system” failed to follow through on.
Mugger asked for it
As reported by the New York Post, “a relative of the mugger gunned down by his would-be victim in Queens this week doesn’t blame the shooter for defending himself from the unhinged assailant.”
The case caught national attention by the way 65-year-old Charles Foehner casually smoked 35-year-old Stephan Gonzalez without even putting down his cigarette. That’s life in New York.
As Cody Gonzalez explained on Friday, June 2, he’s related to Cody’s adopted family by marriage. “I don’t fault him, not really,” Stephan declared regarding the man who pulled the trigger. Cody was a professional mugger who “had psych problems.”
Charles Foehner, 65, the Queens man who fatally shot an ex-con trying to rob him near his home early Wednesday, has been charged with 25 counts of illegal weapons possession.
He used an unlicensed .38-caliber revolver to shoot his mugger.
The remaining charges were for a cache… pic.twitter.com/jlo0AWCCEM
— Crime in NYC (@CrimeInNYC) June 2, 2023
“After his mom died, he was on his own. The city kind of just let him go.” They knew him well in Rikers, and “then he was in a halfway house.” The last time Stephan saw him, “it was on 71st and Jamaica [streets] — he was panhandling. He had his episodes.”
It seems that Cody’s trouble started about the time he turned 18. That’s when “city and state-run mental health programs really messed up, horribly.” Stephan didn’t elaborate with details on that.
He did note that once the system took over Cody’s care was out of family hands. “He went to Rikers a few times. He was in psych facilities.” He wouldn’t have ended up a mugger if his handlers kept better tabs on him.
Stopped taking his pills
Another relative, Anthony Aguilar, who’s Cody’s cousin, added that “he wasn’t a bad kid. It’s ’cause he stopped taking his damn pills. He was fine when he was taking his medication.” When he didn’t take his pills, things could get ugly. That’s why the family is in agreement that “they don’t fault the older man who they believe fatally shot him in self-defense.”
A mugger is a dangerous threat and New York is a dangerous city. Aguilar believes “Foehner was within his rights when he opened fire.” The way he put it, “if he tried to rob him, the guy’s only defending himself. You can’t blame him for defending himself.”
Along with his sister, Cody was adopted by Sonia Gonzalez, who, according to Aguilar, “spoiled them relentlessly when they were young.” The mugging victim, Charles Foehner, was “charged with multiple counts of criminal possession of weapon.”
Charles Foehner is a hero and should be set free immediately.https://t.co/ahqBGPNV7H
— Waving at Elliott (@dapstats) June 1, 2023
He may have possessed the gun illegally but he’s alive and his mugger isn’t. “He started hanging out with the wrong people and then he just stopped coming home,” Aguilar recalled.
They weren’t surprised he was out mugging people on the street. His mother “got tired of it because every time she would see him it was always with the police.” Video clearly shows that “Gonzalez flashed a sharp object.” It turned out to be a pen but you can still kill someone with one of those, as anyone who’s been in prison knows well.
He “demanded cash and cigarettes.” Foehner pulled out his gun and stepped backwards. Gonzalez didn’t take the hint. He “continues to act erratically and suddenly lunges at Foehner,” who pulled the trigger. Gonzalez took off running but didn’t get far. Foehner then called 911 and reported one less mugger.
