"The subway vigilante", as Goetz was labeled by New York City media, was front-page news for months, partly owing to the repressed passions the incident unleashed in New York and other cities.

He was also frequently credited for photographs that captured news events closer to his home in New York City, such as a NYC subway shot of "subway vigilante" Bernhard Goetz, Howard Beach, or the 1989 funeral of Yusuf Hawkins.

Bernhard Goetz, New York City's "subway vigilante"

Moreover, it is highly inappropriate for you to label Mr. Goetz as the "subway vigilante."

Perhaps you are familiar with the celebrated case of Bernard Goetz, the subway vigilante in New York City.

The standard for justification shifted after rulings in the case of Bernard Goetz, the so-called subway vigilante, legal experts said.

In a shocking turn that seemed a wake-up call as to how bad the problem had become, when a tip line was set up to catch the "subway vigilante," many New Yorkers called instead to praise Mr. Goetz's actions.

He sentenced the "subway vigilante," who had been convicted of illegal gun possession, to six months in jail and four and a half years on probation.

In 1985, after Bernhard Goetz shot and wounded four attackers on a New York subway train, Silver wrote in the Wall Street Journal, "The legality of the actions of the 'subway vigilante' cannot be determined until all the facts are in.

He shot all four and fled, earning him the media appellation "the subway vigilante".