NY Lawmaker Targets the 'Knockout' Game with New Bill

A New York state legislator said it’s time to crack down on the violent “knockout game” in which youths sucker punch innocent bystanders for kicks. 

Assemblyman Jim Tedisco, R-Schenectady, said Thursday that his bill would make the violent game a gang assault with a sentence of up to 25 years. Youths would be charged as adults.

“They want to be big shots and big men … so they should have a big law to protect the innocent law-abiding citizens,” Tedisco told WCBS 880. “Clearly, these are not young gentlemen — they’re punks, they’re thugs, they’re cowards.” 

Tedisco said his measure is intended to be a deterrent to stop the game in which participants try to punch a stranger so hard they are rendered unconscious, often while other youths record the attack for online sites.

His bill will also include prison time for convicted accomplices who watch or record the assaults. 

State Assemblyman Dov Hikind, D-Brooklyn, has written to President Barack Obama and U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, urging federal action against “knockout game” attacks.

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