Gothamist76%

Man pleads not guilty to shooting 8 people 19%

By Charles Lane36%

7/10/2026, 9:52:56 PM

BS Summary: This article contains 14 faulty reasoning types, including Framing Effect, Attempt to Sell a Product or Service, and Appeal to Authority, with Negativity Bias as the most egregious example at 30.6% saturation with 159 hits. Analysis detected 655 faulty-reasoning hits from 520 analyzed words, generating a BS Score of 33.7% and a BS Rank of 19% (17,335 of 21,198 articles). This article is better (less manipulative) than 81.80% of the article peer group.

Man pleads not guilty to shooting 8 people, including 4 kids, at July 4 Coney Island BBQ 
Published Jul 10, 2026 at 5:52 p.m. 
ET 
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A man accused of opening fire on a Fourth of July barbecue in Coney Island, wounding eight people including four children, pleaded not guilty Friday. 
Robert Smith, 44, was arraigned in Brooklyn criminal court on charges including attempted murder in the first degree and ordered held without bail. 
He is due back in court on July 13. 
Around 10:30 p.m. on July 4, about 20 people had gathered for a barbecue in an apartment courtyard near Surf Avenue and West 30th Street when a man opened fire on the crowd, according to a criminal complaint. 
Eight people were struck, among them a 6-year-old shot in the abdomen, a 7-year-old shot in both legs, a 12-year-old shot in the right knee and a 14-year-old shot in the thigh. 
All eight are expected to survive, police said. 
A 21-year-old woman who was shot in the chest remained in critical condition Friday, while the other seven victims, including the four children, were in stable condition. 
Prosecutors allege that surveillance video captured a man firing multiple times toward the courtyard before walking off toward Surf Avenue. 
The case against Smith rests in part on a witness who reviewed the footage and identified him as the gunman, according to the complaint. 
Smith was arrested early Wednesday at his home on Neptune Avenue in Coney Island, police said. 
Along with attempted murder, Smith is charged with assault, criminal use of a firearm, weapons possession and four counts of endangering the welfare of a child, court records show. 
Smith's attorney declined to comment. 
Police have said they were investigating whether the shooting was connected to a gang-related killing on the same block earlier that week. 
NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said officers recovered a gun with an extended magazine and 10 shell casings at the scene. 
Charles is a Day-of reporter focused on breaking news and enterprise. 
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Published Jul 10, 2026 at 5:43 p.m. 
ET 
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Article reasoning-pattern comparisonThis article: 4.6%Charles Lane: 2.4%Gothamist: 2.7%Confirmation Bias4.6%This article: 7.3%Charles Lane: 1.8%Gothamist: 1.5%Anchoring Bias7.3%This article: 6.7%Charles Lane: 3.5%Gothamist: 3.6%Availability Heuristic6.7%This article: 2.3%Charles Lane: 1.0%Gothamist: 1.1%Representativeness Heuristic2.3%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 0.6%Gothamist: 0.7%Hindsight Bias0.0%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 0.6%Gothamist: 1.2%Overconfidence Bias0.0%This article: 22.1%Charles Lane: 5.7%Gothamist: 8.4%Framing Effect22.1%This article: 2.3%Charles Lane: 0.4%Gothamist: 1.2%Loss Aversion2.3%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 0.7%Gothamist: 1.1%Status Quo Bias0.0%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 0.1%Gothamist: 0.2%Sunk Cost Effect0.0%This article: 6.0%Charles Lane: 1.3%Gothamist: 3.6%Optimism Bias6.0%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 0.6%Gothamist: 1.7%Pessimism Bias0.0%This article: 30.6%Charles Lane: 8.9%Gothamist: 8.5%Negativity Bias30.6%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 1.2%Gothamist: 2.6%Self-Serving Bias0.0%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 1.4%Gothamist: 1.0%Fundamental Attribution Error0.0%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 0.3%Gothamist: 0.3%Actor-Observer Bias0.0%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 1.5%Gothamist: 2.1%In-Group Bias0.0%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 0.1%Gothamist: 0.6%Out-Group Homogeneity Bias0.0%This article: 5.4%Charles Lane: 1.4%Gothamist: 2.1%Halo Effect5.4%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 0.2%Gothamist: 0.2%Horn Effect0.0%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 0.0%Gothamist: 0.0%Dunning-Kruger Effect0.0%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 1.1%Gothamist: 1.3%Recency Bias0.0%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 0.4%Gothamist: 0.4%Primacy Effect0.0%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 0.1%Gothamist: 0.1%Blind-Spot Bias0.0%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 0.2%Gothamist: 1.0%Ad Hominem0.0%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 0.0%Gothamist: 0.2%Straw Man0.0%This article: 13.3%Charles Lane: 4.0%Gothamist: 4.4%Appeal to Authority13.3%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 0.7%Gothamist: 1.2%False Dilemma0.0%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 0.3%Gothamist: 0.8%Slippery Slope0.0%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 0.0%Gothamist: 0.1%Circular Reasoning0.0%This article: 2.5%Charles Lane: 2.9%Gothamist: 3.8%Hasty Generalization2.5%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 0.2%Gothamist: 0.3%Red Herring0.0%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 0.4%Gothamist: 0.8%Bandwagon0.0%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 3.4%Gothamist: 6.4%Appeal to Emotion0.0%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 0.4%Gothamist: 0.7%Begging the Question0.0%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 2.7%Gothamist: 2.4%Post Hoc (False Cause)0.0%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 0.0%Gothamist: 0.1%Tu Quoque0.0%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 0.4%Gothamist: 0.4%Burden of Proof0.0%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 0.0%Gothamist: 0.2%Appeal to Nature0.0%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 0.1%Gothamist: 0.2%Composition/Division0.0%This article: 2.1%Charles Lane: 1.6%Gothamist: 2.8%Anecdotal2.1%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 0.0%Gothamist: 0.1%No True Scotsman0.0%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 1.2%Gothamist: 1.2%Ambiguity (Equivocation)0.0%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 0.0%Gothamist: 0.0%Gambler’s Fallacy0.0%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 0.1%Gothamist: 0.1%Middle Ground0.0%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 0.0%Gothamist: 0.1%Personal Incredulity0.0%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 0.1%Gothamist: 0.2%Special Pleading0.0%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 0.0%Gothamist: 0.2%Genetic Fallacy0.0%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 1.2%Gothamist: 1.2%Unattributed Quote0.0%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 0.8%Gothamist: 1.0%Quote-first Misdirection0.0%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 1.8%Gothamist: 3.2%Biased Writer Voice0.0%This article: 3.8%Charles Lane: 1.1%Gothamist: 1.5%Indoctrination3.8%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 0.3%Gothamist: 1.0%Politically Left Leaning Bias0.0%This article: 0.0%Charles Lane: 0.1%Gothamist: 0.2%Politically Right Leaning Bias0.0%This article: 16.9%Charles Lane: 1.5%Gothamist: 1.0%Attempt to Sell a Product or S…16.9%

520 words analyzed.

Speakers

8speakers33%attributed speech349writer words
Voice mapSelect a segment to jump to its words
Writer's voice • 8 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 17 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 7 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 1 words • 0.0% coverageNew York Public Radio • 20 words • 100.0% coverageWriter's voice • 12 words • 100.0% coverageWriter's voice • 10 words • 100.0% coverageWriter's voice • 2 words • 100.0% coverageGothamist • 8 words • 100.0% coverageWriter's voice • 25 words • 0.0% coverageRobert Smith • 23 words • 0.0% coverageRobert Smith • 9 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 38 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 32 words • 0.0% coveragepolice • 8 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 27 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 20 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 24 words • 0.0% coveragepolice • 16 words • 0.0% coveragecourt records • 29 words • 0.0% coverageSmith's attorney • 5 words • 0.0% coveragepolice • 22 words • 0.0% coverageNYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch • 20 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 11 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 17 words • 100.0% coverageWriter's voice • 13 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 11 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 7 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 1 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 9 words • 0.0% coverageJeremy Scheublin • 11 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 13 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 12 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 13 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 19 words • 100.0% coverage
Selected voice

New York Public Radio

100%flagged-word coverage
20 attributed words12% of attributed speech93% writer coverage
0%50.0%100.0%Indoctrination+100.0 ptsWriter: 0.0%New York Public Radio: 100.0%100.0%Attempt to Sell a Product +82.8 ptsWriter: 17.2%New York Public Radio: 100.0%100.0%

Attribution is sentence-level. Pattern percentages are calculated only from words assigned to that voice.

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Analysis

Hover over highlighted words in the article to view the associated bias or fallacy analysis.