Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Concert Calls Save Innocent Man From Jail
By
Garth Johnston
Published Dec 22, 2010
Modified Dec 22, 2010
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
Garth Johnston
Published Dec 22, 2010
Modified Dec 22, 2010
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
A good reason to use your phone when you are at a concert? Good alibi. That's the lesson we're taking from the story of Shane Rhooms. It starts like this: On September 6 an assailant got off six shots at cops in Flatbush before running away. Those same officers later picked Rhooms mugshot out of a photo lineup and insisted he was their guy and locked him up in Riker's. Only problem? He kept insisting he was nowhere near Flatbush at the time, in fact he said he was at a reggae concert at Webster Hall.
The police eventually restarted their investigation after Rhooms passed a lie-detector test and let him out of jail (after three weeks!). Meanwhile, Rhooms lawyer went and dug up video footage of his client entering Webster Hall and cellphone records that proved he was in Manhattan at the time of the shooting (he had gotten separated from a friend at the concert and called to try and find him). Yesterday a judge dropped all charges against the innocent man.
Not that Rhooms' good news is sitting well in Police headquarters. "Detectives were and remain confident of information that led them to the suspect in the first place, of the subsequent police identifications and they remain skeptical of the purported alibi," NYPD spokesman Paul Browne told the News. We honestly aren't sure how else they could be convinced.
Tagged
cellphones
nypd
Rikers Island
Shane Rhooms
shooting
webster hall
Garth Johnston
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Early Addition: Is the Cheesecake Factory vs. the Amtrak buttercake our new culture war?
Because they're raving about the little cake you can only get in first class on select trains, here are your early links: Hunting for Bigfoot is big in New Jersey, the East Village got a kitschy wedding chapel, "Slime Square-42 St," and more.
By
James Ramsay
Published Oct 29, 2026 at 10:00 a.m. ET
Brooklyn woman hit and killed by garbage truck at Bay Parkway, NYPD says
At a time of year when traffic deaths rise due to reduced visibility, 30-year-old Siobhan Lynch was struck and killed just after dusk.
By
Ryan Kost
News
Brooklyn woman hit and killed by garbage truck at Bay Parkway, NYPD says
At a time of year when traffic deaths rise due to reduced visibility, 30-year-old Siobhan Lynch was struck and killed just after dusk.
By
Ryan Kost
NY's housing crisis is on the ballot. Here's what the candidates say they'll do about it.
By
David Brand
Brooklyn's Ocean Parkway is a haven for reckless driving. Mamdani isn't allowed to fix it.
By
Stephen Nessen
NJ state police fatally shot man in Moonachie, officials said
By
Kaya Laterman
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 .