Meet NYC's worst ‘pro-defendant' judge who frees violent perps, allegedly berates sex-crime victims and prosecutors

Yahoo

22-03-2025

New York City's worst judge — who lets violent perps walk free a stunning 85% of the time — was once so 'condescending' to a sex-crime victim, the woman refused to testify in her courtroom, sources told The Post.
Queens Criminal Court Judge Wanda 'Wendy' Licitra is 'the bane of our existence,' a Queens District Attorney insider said. 'She has no concern whatsoever for victims of crimes.'
Out of 43 violent felony cases overseen by Licitra between January and June 2024, she set bail only five times and held no suspects in pretrial detention — an 85% release rate, according to a Post review of the latest available Office of Court Administration data.
That was the highest rate of all city judges with at least 25 felony criminal cases, The Post found.
Licitra's alleged affinity for criminals was on display in a 2024 sex-crime case, two sources said.
Licitra, 65, 'declared a mistrial during summations on the case because she didn't think the [prosecuting] attorney was doing a good job,' one source said, noting the judge spoke down to the victim during the proceedings.
'When the case came up for retrial, the woman who testified before her refused to testify again,' the source explained.
The Democrat jurist's treatment of the victim was a serious problem, a second source added. 'The victim was not happy with the way the judge had spoken to her.'
The case was ultimately dismissed.
'This awful thing happens … and because of the way they're treated within the system that's supposed to be protecting them, she was not willing to testify again,' the insider said. 'It's really sad.'
Licitra, a former Legal Aid defense attorney who now earns upwards of $196,200 as a judge, has no love for assistant district attorneys either, critics said.
'She's disrespectful to prosecutors. She loves defense attorneys, but when prosecutors open up their mouths, she's condescending and she's nasty,' one of the sources said.
The second insider recalled how in a different case, a prosecutor went to court to ask to speak to Licitra and waited two hours, only to have the judge, who was appointed to the bench by then-Mayor de Blasio in 2020, refuse.
'It seemed like it was very intentional,' the source said.
Court records show the judge refused to look at 'crystal clear' video in a 2024 assault case against a repeat criminal who at that point had wracked up 26 prior arrests.
Hulking, 6-foot-1 suspect Courtney Jacobs was caught on camera randomly 'choking and beating' a LaGuardia Airport pilot, who was in full uniform on a city bus on his way to work, an ADA told Licitra, according to a transcript.
The prosecutor, who had sought one year behind bars for Jacobs, pleaded with the judge to consider the 'overwhelming' evidence — including photos of the pilot's injuries, and potential testimony from the victim — before offering the suspect any deal.
'This is what members of our community – victims on buses and subway platforms – are truly terrorized by, stranger attacks unprovoked for no reason by someone bigger and stronger,' the prosecutor said.
The prosecutor noted she'd worked extensively with the defense to see if Jacobs had a mental illness or could get treatment — but found he was simply 'a sociopath.'
Jacobs 'understands what he is doing is wrong. He just chooses to do it and it is problematic,' the prosecutor told the judge.
Licitra was unmoved. 'I'm a big girl. I'm perfectly able [to make] my own assessment and determination,' Licitra added, ultimately begrudgingly agreeing to review the tapes.
Jacobs could have been given a two-year sentence, but instead was behind bars for just over three months before being released on Nov. 29 due to time served, according to city records.
On Feb. 5 he was arrested again and accused of randomly socking another unsuspecting victim in the face, this time inside a light rail station at JFK Airport.
A different Queens judge set Jacobs' bail at $10,000 cash or $50,000 bond in that case, which is pending.
Even among defense attorneys, Licitra has gained notoriety for springing violent accused criminals.
'She's letting them all out,' one longtime defense lawyer previously told The Post.
Last year, Licitra cut loose at least two perps charged with first-degree assault with a weapon and second-degree robbery resulting in physical injury, respectively, without bail – only for the pair to be rearrested for violent felonies, according to OCA's pretrial data.
In February of 2022, she released 37-year-old Frank Abrokwa, who was accused of assaulting a woman on the subway by shoving poop in her face – even after Abrokwa snarled at Licitra, 'F–k you, bitch' in her courtroom.
The State University of New York at New Paltz graduate received her law degree from Hofstra University School of Law.
She has two homes — an apartment in Forest Hills, Queens, just a few minutes from the courthouse, and a sprawling 7,500-square-foot home on Long Island worth more than $600,000, where The Post spotted her getting into a white Nissan Rogue in the driveway last week.
Licitra and the Office of Court Administration did not respond to inquiries.