Man accused of killing Forest Hills delivery driver makes bail, released to home confinement
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Queens Supreme Court Justice Kenneth Holder ordered Glenn Hirsch to be held on home confinement after the Briarwood man accused of fatally shooting a delivery driver in April posted bail on Monday, June 27, 2022. Eagle file photo
By Jacob Kaye
Glenn Hirsch, the Briarwood man accused of shooting a delivery driver in Forest Hills to death in April, was released on bail by a Queens Criminal Court judge on Monday.
Hirsch posted the $500,000 bail set by Queens Supreme Court Justice Kenneth Holder, despite pleas from the Queens district attorney’s office, local electeds and community members to keep the accused killer remanded on Rikers Island.
Hirsch, 51, is charged with murdering Zhiwen Yan, a delivery driver for the Great Wall restaurant on Queens Boulevard, on April 30. He’ll now await his trial from his home, where he’ll be electronically monitored.
Should he violate the terms of his confinement, which include staying away from the Great Wall, not coming within a mile of any exit out of New York City or going somewhere without permission, Hirsch will be sent back to jail.
“You go outside of the area, the location, if you end up in Manhattan, other areas of Queens, if you end up in Brooklyn or anywhere except a direct route to where you’re supposed to go, the sheriff’s department will pick you up and bring you back before me and I will remand you,” Holder said during Monday’s hearing, according to the New York Post.
“And no matter how much money you have, you will not be coming out of jail until this case is over,” the judge added.
Hirsch allegedly began harassing members of Great Wall’s staff in the fall. At one point, he allegedly brandished a gun inside the restaurant and threatened workers there.
His attacks culminated in the murder of Yan, when on April 30, Hirsch shot Yan, a father of three who migrated from China about two decades ago, while he was making a delivery near 108th Street and 67th Drive around 9:30 p.m.
About a month later, Hirsch was arrested by the NYPD – his wife, Dorothy Hirsch, was also arrested on weapons charges after the NYPD found eight illegal guns inside her home.
A number of community activists have questioned why Hirsch’s arrest took weeks given the fact that he was almost immediately identified as a suspect in the days following Yan’s murder.
“I know there was some frustration with the timeline, but this was all done to maintain the integrity of the case to make sure that everything was done lawfully and properly,” Deputy Inspector Joseph Cappelmann of the 112th Precinct recently told members of Queens Community Board 6.
But community advocates say the month-long wait for the arrest and the lack of action taken during the multiple alleged harassments in the months prior were the first in what has felt like a long list of slights against a grieving family and community. The setting of bail on Hirsch was just another slight on that list, advocates say.
“He had the ability to exercise his judgment,” said Jessica Zhao, the vice president of the Forest Hills Asian Association. “So, it’s just really another slap in the face.”
“I don’t understand what it’s going to take,” Zhao added.
Holder remanded Hirsch following the accused man’s first appearance in Queens Criminal Court following his arrest. However, that changed during Hirsch’s June 8 appearance when Holder set bail at $500,000 or a $10 million bond, which was later lowered to $500,000, according to court records.
In New York State, judges can only consider a defendant’s potential flight risk when setting bail, which is used to ensure a person returns to court. A person’s criminal history or their perceived dangerousness are not allowed to be considered.
The move to set bail was fought by the Queens district attorney’s office, which sought for Hirsch to be remanded until the conclusion of his trial.
“Bail is not, and never was, meant to be punitive; rather, its purpose is to ensure the accused returns to court to answer the charges,” a spokesperson for the DA’s office said in a statement to the Eagle. “The law gives the judge the discretion to set bail in an amount the judge believes is reasonably calculated to accomplish this purpose.”
“In this case, although we asked the court to remand the defendant without bail, the court set bail in a very substantial amount while agreeing to impose conditions we requested, including house arrest and electronic monitoring,” the spokesperson added. “Any violation of the terms or conditions could result in bail being revoked."
Over the weekend and prior to Hirsch’s posting of bail, several elected officials, including Rep. Grace Meng, State Senators Joe Addabbo, Toby Ann Stavisky and Leroy Comrie, Assemblymember Andrew Hevesi and City Councilmember Lynn Schulman, issued a statement urging Holder to remand the defendant.
“Granting bail would be the wrong decision and we hope that it does not happen,” the lawmakers said. “It is terrifying and unsettling and we resolutely oppose it.”
On Tuesday, Addabbo decried the decision to not to remand Hirsch.
“For the safety of the community, he should have been in jail, he should have been held,” Addabbo told the Eagle. “It would have caused a lot of less consternation and frustration amongst my people and fear amongst those workers in that area.”
Since the start of the pandemic, New York City has seen a rise in hate attacks against Asian Americans. Though Hirsch has not been charged with a hate crime, community leaders in Forest Hills say the Asian American community in the neighborhood is concerned for their safety following Hirsch’s release.
“It reflects how we've been feeling, how the Asian American community has been feeling during this entire pandemic – that our concerns are not being taken seriously,” Kevin Ly, a Forest Hills resident and Community Board 6 member told the Eagle on Tuesday.
“I've been trying to urge the community to prepare for the worst case scenario, and I think unfortunately, every step of the way, it has come true,” Ly added. “What I am looking for is just more transparency, accountability and just clearer answers because there is a sense in our community that we're not getting straight answers.”
Hirsch’s attorney did not respond to requests for comment.
