Victim of 2021 attack outside Harlem liquor store says dealing with agencies who were supposed to help her has been a nightmare
NEW YORK -- For the first time in two years, the victim of a heinous attack in Harlem is speaking out.
Surveillance video showed the woman being beaten and robbed by a group outside a liquor store after declining to let someone pay for her wine.
As she struggles to recover, the victim told CBS2's Lisa Rozner it's been a nightmare dealing with city and state agencies who were supposed to help her.
"This block changed my life," Catherine Taylor said.
It was Jan. 18, 2021.
READ MORE: Police: Woman Bitten, Robbed By Men After Argument At Harlem Liquor Store
"It's like I see myself asking for help," Taylor said.
Taylor walked into a liquor store on West 128th Street to buy a bottle of wine after work.
"Have a long day, you know, you want to unwind. You don't want to go out and be attacked," she said.
All because, she says, she declined an offer by a group of men to pay for her wine.
When she left the store, video shows a group surround her, chase her across the street and kick her.
Taylor says one man, Tyrone Cooper, who was later arrested, tried to bite her eye.
Two other men police were looking for were never caught.
Her case garnered a lot of attention. Grammy-winning rapper T.I. shared our coverage of the attack, and protesters rallied, chanting "protect Black women," but Taylor says it fell on deaf ears.
She says after the incident, the Manhattan District Attorney's office told her "that not only would they get the individuals who did it to me, but that I would have access to great therapists."
"A lot of the places, they didn't take the insurance that I had at the time," she continued.
She was also told she'd be reimbursed for items stolen and damaged during the crime.
Taylor showed us receipts sent to the DA for forwarding to the state Office of Victim Services (OVS) for her stolen iPhone and a new coat since hers was bloodied.
Because of the emotional trauma, she says she lost her job and home and was told she could submit receipts for moving expenses.
Two years later, she says she's received no financial or mental health support from the city or state.
"It would have went a long way to have that phone call that just said, 'Hey, are you OK?'" Taylor said. "I had to reach out to them and ... the person at the District Attorney's office had told me that the OVS case had been closed. She didn't have an explanation of why it was closed ... I absolutely felt like I was just another young Black mother, another young Black face in Harlem that something tragic had happened to.."
As for why it has taken so long for Taylor to get a response, the state OVS told Rozner all claims are confidential so it cannot comment on her case.
A spokesperson said that, in general, "Upon receiving all required receipts and documentation, OVS reimburses a victim or their provider within 30 days."
Since we reached out for this story, Taylor says a rep from the DA called her to apologize and get her case re-opened.
She adds no one from the NYPD has contacted her about the suspects still out there, and a police source says their photos haven't been recirculated since 2021.
"I feel extremely let down. It's extremely unsafe," Taylor said. "My life came crumbling down after that incident ... It's important that people understand that as, when you go through things as a victim, it's not just what you go through, your life falls apart afterwards."
READ MORE: NYPD: Tyrone Cooper Facing Charges After Harlem Mother Brutally Attacked Outside Liquor Store
As she pieces hers together, Taylor hopes to start a nonprofit helping victims find therapy and get financial support so they never feel as alone as she did.
A spokesperson for the Manhattan District Attorney sent CBS2 the following statement:
"We center survivors in all of our work, and will continue to support the victim in this case. The Witness Aid Services Unit of the Manhattan District Attorney's Office has provided advocacy and referral information. An advocate from the unit has been in regular communication with the victim, provided referral services and submitted timely compensation requests to the New York State Office of Victim Services, which processes and approves claims. We will proceed with the court case once the defendant in this matter is found fit and will continue to investigate the incident."
Taylor says the NYPD has not reached out about her case since 2021.
As for the one person arrested, Cooper was found unfit for trial this past November. The DA says he remains in a hospital until he's found fit to proceed. Cooper faces a felony robbery charge in this case, and he's also accused of assaulting a woman in BRooklyn.
The NYPD says there are no updates and the investigation is ongoing.
