A 17-year-old gang member from the Bronx, who has been arrested 20 times, has become the poster child for critics of the Raise the Age law, police sources say.
The teenager, drill rapper Julian Turner, first came to police attention at age 14 when he was arrested for shooting a man. His latest arrest occurred on October 10, when he was caught allegedly carrying a gun on a subway platform at Penn Station, according to court records and law enforcement officials.
“You have a 17-year-old kid who tried to kill people with a gun and is still walking around with guns,” said a Manhattan police officer. “What do you think he’s going to do with a gun? He’s going to kill somebody.”
All of Turner’s arrests have taken place since the left-leaning April 2017 legislation raised the age of criminal responsibility to 18. The law was designed to keep children out of the criminal justice system and reduce youth incarceration. But in Turner’s case, it appears to have had little effect on rehabilitation.
Turner, an alleged member of the Young Gunnaz gang and known in the drill rap scene as Baby B-Dot, remains defiant. “I’m not a baby,” officials quoted him as saying.
Retired NYPD Assistant Commissioner of Youth Services Kevin O’Connor criticized the law’s limitations, stating, “Raise the Age does not allow the judges to use prior history when determining what to do with these kids. Here he is at 17—a career criminal. Raise the Age allows this to happen. How many people have to get shot or killed before they change the law?”
At the time of his latest arrest, Turner, who is currently on parole for juvenile offenses until August 2026, was on a subway train on the A/C/E line at Penn Station just before noon. An MTA worker noticed Turner and another teenager flashing gang signs. The subway engineer also observed Turner fidgeting with something in his waistband and alerted police who were on the platform, sources said.
When officers attempted to question and search Turner, he allegedly resisted and wrestled with them on the platform—an incident captured on police body camera footage. Officers eventually found a loaded handgun with a defaced serial number. Turner was charged with criminal possession of a weapon and resisting arrest and has been held on $75,000 cash bail or $175,000 bond, prosecutors said.
Turner’s criminal history is extensive. On September 2, he allegedly robbed a 32-year-old man at gunpoint in Morris Heights and was charged with robbery and criminal possession of a weapon.
Turner’s life of crime reportedly began at age 10. On December 19, 2018, he allegedly pulled a fake gun on two boys aged 11 and 13, threatening them and punching the younger child. Arrested with a knife, Turner faced charges of menacing, assault, and criminal possession of a weapon. Because he was a minor, outcomes of these early cases remain confidential.
The following year, Turner allegedly slashed a 14-year-old’s ear with a box cutter in Kingsbridge. Police also report that on August 31, 2019, the then 11-year-old Turner stabbed a 71-year-old woman’s hand after grabbing an item from a vendor’s table. Once again, records for these incidents are sealed due to his age.
At age 14, Turner’s violent activities escalated. On September 19, 2022, he allegedly fired shots at a Dunkin’ Donuts from the back of a scooter in Kingsbridge, striking the restaurant’s window but causing no injuries. Just days later, he reportedly shot a 20-year-old man in the leg outside a Kingsbridge Heights restaurant.
Then Chief of Detectives James Essig described Turner’s record at that time as staggering: “Eighteen arrests. He’s 14-years-old.” Turner was charged with attempted murder and criminal possession of a weapon and sent to a juvenile detention facility, although the length of his stay remains undisclosed.
O’Connor slammed the current system, adding, “There’s no accountability with Raise the Age. How many times is it going to take? How many people have to get shot or killed before they change the law?”
Turner’s lawyer could not be reached for comment.
https://nypost.com/2025/10/18/us-news/raise-the-age-allowed-this-teen-gang-banger-with-lengthy-rap-sheet-busted-again/
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