Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
16 Year Old Arrested in Union Square Melee
By
Jen Chung
Published Dec 9, 2006
Modified Mar 7, 2008
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Jen Chung
Published Dec 9, 2006
Modified Mar 7, 2008
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Police arrested 16 year old Francisco Baez for the murder of Taishawn Bellevue. Bellevue was killed during an shocking Wednesday afternoon brawl in the Union Square Greenmarket, where about 50 teens convened with belts, bats, bricks and more. The fight may have been prompted by some students feeling insulted by others, which then led to groups of students from nearby Washington Irving High School and Brooklyn's Science Skills High School to meet.
Baez was picked out of a police line up by two eyewitnesses and confessed to the crime. Baez's mother, though, cried during the arraignment in which he was denied bail: "They're trying to accuse my son of something he didn't do." Baez was also criticized by the judge for "not looking forward at the bench," according to the Post. Baez was charged with second degree murder, gang assault and criminal possession of a weapon.
The mother of Glenwood Nobles, who was stabbed in the back, told the Post, "I want all these kids to be locked up. That one arrest is not going to help." Nobles, a student at Science Skills, himself told the NY Times yesterday that he and his friends did not expect a fight - and if they did, they "would have brought weapons."
Photograph from the Project for Public Spaces, which called Union Square Park the fifth best public square in the U.S. and Canada
Tagged
brooklyn
canada
crime
friends
high school
kids
murder
ny times
police
public spaces
science
Science Skills
union square
union square greenmarket
union square park
washington
Washington Irving
washington irving high school
Wednesday
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
2 pedestrians killed in Bronx crash after driver ran red light, police say
The NYPD said the investigation is continuing and no one had been arrested Saturday.
By
Brittany Kriegstein
and
Ann Givens
Published Oct 10, 2026 at 1:24 p.m. ET
Rain could put a damper on NYC’s long weekend. Here’s when it will clear.
Remnants of Hurricane Isaias could bring more than an inch of rain, gusty winds and even a thunderstorm Sunday before conditions improve Monday.
By
Brittany Kriegstein
News
Rain could put a damper on NYC’s long weekend. Here’s when it will clear.
Remnants of Hurricane Isaias could bring more than an inch of rain, gusty winds and even a thunderstorm Sunday before conditions improve Monday.
By
Brittany Kriegstein
Holy civics! NYC schools' own comic books in the spotlight at Comic Con
By
Jessica Gould
What we know about the ICE shooting in NYC
By
Karen Yi
DSA to Mamdani: Fire NYPD commissioner if ICE doesn't leave NYC
By
Elizabeth Kim
,
Brigid Bergin
and
Ben Feuerherd
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .