Five weeks after President Trump stepped off a stage to hold her, the mother of 12-year-old Jacob Freytes sat in a Bronx courtroom on Thursday and watched the career criminal accused of killing her son tell a judge he did nothing wrong.
William Ferrer, 45, entered a plea of not guilty on Thursday, September 17, 2026, at his first appearance on the indictment charging him with second-degree murder, first-degree manslaughter, assault and weapons counts. Jacob’s mother, Migdalia Martinez, fought back tears a few feet away, according to the New York Post.
Story Snapshot
- Jacob Freytes, the son of a retired NYPD sergeant, was hit by a stray bullet outside a Mount Eden bodega on July 25.
- Police arrested Ferrer outside his Bronx home the next day; he has been held without bail since July 27.
- On Thursday he pleaded not guilty to the indictment. He faces 25 years to life on the top count.
- President Trump left the stage at an August 14 speech to embrace Jacob’s parents in the crowd.
“He Didn’t Get To Reach 13”
Jacob was outside a bodega near Elliot Place and Walton Avenue just before 5 p.m. on a Saturday in July when a street dispute turned into gunfire. Two men were wounded. Jacob, who was not the target, was struck and killed. Surveillance video showed a fight breaking out moments before the shots, according to ABC7.
NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch announced Ferrer’s arrest the next day. Reporters shouted questions as he was walked out of the 44th Precinct. He said nothing. At his first arraignment in Bronx Criminal Court, a judge ordered him held without bail. “We look forward to the case playing out in court,” his lawyer, Ray Gazer, said at the time.
Mom of innocent 12-year-old gunned down by career criminal fights back tears as alleged killer makes first court appearance
The career criminal accused of fatally shooting the 12-year-old son of a retired NYPD cop pleaded not guilty Thursday — as the boy’s heartbroken mother… pic.twitter.com/ZLU2pLjlNr
— News News News (@NewsNew97351204) September 17, 2026
Martinez broke her silence weeks later. “He didn’t get to reach 13,” she told NBC New York. Neighbors built a memorial outside the bodega that grew for weeks.
The Moment Trump Stopped His Speech
On August 14, during a speech on Long Island, President Trump spotted Jacob’s parents in the crowd, stopped mid-remarks, and walked off the stage to embrace them. Video of the moment spread across the country and turned Jacob’s name into a national symbol of the cost of repeat offenders on city streets.
The Post described Ferrer as a career criminal with a long record before the July shooting. Prosecutors have not yet laid out that history in court. The not-guilty plea moves the case toward pretrial hearings, where the defense will test the ballistics and witness accounts that tie Ferrer to the fatal round.
What Comes Next
Ferrer remains held without bail. The next court date will be set for pretrial motions. Martinez has said she plans to be in the courtroom every time he is.
Sources:
nypost.com, nbcnewyork.com, cbsnews.com, nydailynews.com, abc7ny.com
