Manhattan Judge Drops Murder Case Against Nurse Tracy McCarter

A Manhattan judge on Friday dropped a second-degree murder charge against a nurse who stabbed her husband to death in self-defense — and berated District Attorney Alvin Bragg for refusing to advance the case.

New York Supreme Court Justice Diane Kiesel said she did not dismiss Tracy McCarter’s charges on the merits – but because Bragg changed course last month and refused to prosecute her.

“The court finds no compelling reason to dismiss the charges other than the district attorney’s unwillingness to proceed,” she wrote in the decision.

“It is not in the interests of the judiciary for the court to engage in a futile and unseemly confrontation with the district attorney that wastes valuable court resources, disrupts other important cases that need to be pursued in this post-COVID backlog, and the defendant and cause unnecessary worry to the family of the deceased.”

Kiesel said her hands were tied after Bragg’s possible political move.

“Should the prosecution of this criminal transaction end with this written decision, this will be the district attorney’s decision and not the result of a dilemma created by this court,” she wrote.

In March 2020, McCarter was accused of killing her husband James Murray in their Upper West Side apartment building after a history of spousal abuse.

But Bragg sent Kiesel a letter on Nov. 18 saying he would seek a motion to dismiss the charges he originally supported against McCarter.

“Having carefully reviewed all of the evidence and discussed this matter at length with members of my office, I have reasonable doubts as to whether Ms. McCarter stabbed Mr. Murray with the intent necessary to support a second-degree murder conviction,” Bragg wrote to pebbles.

“I decline to proceed with the prosecution. Because “courts do not have the power to compel the prosecution of criminal acts…I also recommend that the charges be dismissed,” Bragg wrote.

McCarter welcomed the dismissal of the charges on Friday.

“I am innocent. And I am devastated that on March 2nd, 2020 a man I loved lost his life,” she told the Post, adding that alcohol played a role in her husband’s death.

“Dismissing the unjust charges against me cannot give me back what I have lost, but I am relieved that this nightmare is finally over and I am determined to thrive again,” she said.

Her attorneys called it a “fair” outcome to drop the charges.

“We are incredibly proud to represent Tracy McCarter, who fought her case for two and a half years to achieve the only just outcome – discharge. And we are so grateful to the community and stakeholders who fought for Tracy to the end,” attorneys Sean Hecker, Alexandra Conlon, Anne Yearwood and others said in a statement.