NYPD union leader rips policies that released deadly shooter after multiple gun arrests

Police Benevolent Association President Patrick Lynch on Wednesday excoriated the criminal justice system following the apprehension of a suspected murderer whom authorities have repeatedly released from custody despite multiple gun-related arrests.

"This perp is living proof of the dangers of our broken justice system — especially the watered-down parole standards," Lynch said, according to the New York Daily News. "Two people are dead and another injured because this violent recidivist was put back on the street."

Sundance Oliver, 28 years old, surrendered to police following a multi-borough criminal rampage during which he allegedly committed two murders and accidentally shot a 96-year-old man. He faces charges of "murder, assault, menacing, criminal possession of a weapon, reckless endangerment, and possession of stolen property," per the outlet.

Oliver has been arrested more than two dozen times since 2009. He was released from prison in 2020 after serving five years for robbery. He was arrested the same year for possessing a loaded gun, though that charge was dismissed. The NY Daily News did not directly state a reason for authorities dropping the charge, but cited sources indicating that the arresting officers had a history of questionable gun seizures.

He was again arrested in August of this year for the same offense, though that charge, too, was ultimately dismissed. In that instance, prosecutors said Oliver did not posses the gun, though the NYPD said the weapon was being DNA tested and the resolution of the charge was pending.

Crime in New York has become a major issue, with concerns about the criminal justice system fueling the near-successful gubernatorial run of Republican Lee Zeldin. Zeldin had vowed to remove Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, whose lenient policies he identified as partially responsible for the crime wave.

Ultimately, however, Zeldin was unsuccessful while Bragg remains in office. New York City Democratic Mayor Eric Adams has attempted to address mounting crime, meanwhile, recently expanding the involuntary detention of the mentally ill following a series of subway attacks.