Ex-Convict Faces Charges After Attacks on NYU Student and Tourist
A homeless former convict has been accused of attacking a New York University student and a tourist in New York City in separate, unprovoked incidents, leaving him visibly shaken in a Manhattan courtroom.
James Rizzo, 45, appeared before Judge Cori Weston on Wednesday, looking wide-eyed and sometimes seemingly lost in a trance, as he faced several charges.
When asked how he pleaded to the two charges, Rizzo responded, “Not guilty!” in a serious manner.
This violent individual, held without bail, gained notoriety after allegedly attacking 20-year-old NYU student Amelia Lewis while she was walking to class on Broadway on December 2.
Shocking footage captured the moment Lewis was approached from behind—she was slapped, thrown to the ground, and the assailant walked away.
Lewis later expressed her disbelief in a tearful TikTok post, recalling, “When I’m walking around listening to music, I felt something slam down on me.” She thought it was just a friend playing around at first.
But then, upon turning around, she was confronted by Rizzo, who grabbed her hair, pulled her down, and sent her headphones flying. “I was like, ‘What the hell happened?'” she recalled.
Rizzo is also tied to the unprovoked attack on a 68-year-old woman, Jana Diane Brazell, who was in New York visiting family during Thanksgiving. Brazell described Rizzo’s erratic behavior, recalling how he approached her with bizarre talk before suddenly pushing her against a glass wall.
“I only met him for about six seconds,” she noted, describing how quickly the encounter happened.
Rizzo has a history of serious charges, with 16 previous indictments, including sexual abuse and forcible touching. He served two years for a sexual abuse conviction and was released from state prison in September.
In court, Rizzo, wearing a brown jacket and shackles, presented a disheveled appearance with an oily ponytail. Manhattan Assistant District Attorney Kylie Wilk warned that he could face up to seven years in prison for the most serious charges he currently faces, including robbery and assault.
