Model Nassadir Tate cleared in fatal Penn Station punch after video confirms self-defense

Manhattan prosecutors dropped assault charges against model Nassadir Tate, 22, after surveillance footage showed the victim struck first at Penn Station.

Charges dropped against NJ model in Penn Station subway death

Manhattan prosecutors dropped assault charges Thursday against Nassadir Tate, 22, a New Jersey-based model accused of delivering the fatal blow to a fellow subway rider at Penn Station — after surveillance footage backed his self-defense claim, NY Post Metro reports.

The video shows that on March 14, Tate only punched Eweka Johnson, 55, after Johnson first bumped into him and then raised his fists in a fighting stance on the uptown E train platform. Tate attempted to walk around Johnson, but Johnson stepped directly into his path and squared up for a fight, according to the footage reviewed by prosecutors.

At that point, Tate — who describes himself on LinkedIn as a "part-time model" and programmer — struck Johnson once in the face and left the scene. He then placed a call that prosecutors later verified was to 911.

Within two minutes of the punch, Johnson's knees buckled and he collapsed on the platform. He was later pronounced dead from a ruptured cerebral artery aneurysm caused by the blow, the Manhattan District Attorney's Office said at the hearing.

Tate had been arrested and charged with assault following the incident. He told police he struck Johnson once because he "feared for his physical safety" and believed a fight was imminent.

A relative of Tate, speaking to NY Post Metro at the time of the arrest, described him as a "good kid" who had never been in trouble. "He's not a troubled person. He's not an instigator. He's not a violent person," the relative said.

Tate's attorney, Wayne Gosnell, told NY Post Metro that the footage made the aggressor unambiguous — saying Johnson had shoved his client multiple times near the edge of the subway platform.

"Mr. Tate — who is half [Johnson's] size — defended himself," Gosnell said. "What's astounding to me is that it took the DA's office as long as it did to realize what should have been patently obvious after 30 seconds of the video."

Source: NY Post Metro