Barnard student assaulted outside of 600 West 116th residence hall
On November 12, students received an alert that a 21-year-old student’s ear was slashed outside of a Barnard residence hall on 116th St.
Photo by Karissa Song/The Barnard Bulletin
By Laila Aburaya and Lucinda Anderson
November 15, 2026 at 12:53 a.m.
Last Thursday at 9:23 p.m., community members received an email from Barnard’s Community Accountability, Response, and Emergency Services (CARES) announcing that “a member of the Barnard community was assaulted in front of 600 West 116 Street,” a residence hall that primarily houses upperclassmen.
In a follow-up email sent at 10:19 p.m., Gary Maroni, director of CARES, shared that the incident occurred around 8:20 p.m. An image of the suspect captured by a security camera was included in the message.
Maroni described the perpetrator as a “dark-skinned male, approximately 5’9", with a stocky build, wearing a black coat, tan pants, white sneakers, and a hood or hat with a yellow brim.” The perpetrator was last seen fleeing the scene on West 116th Street and north on Broadway.
Barnard community members were encouraged to call 911 and CARES if they saw a person who matched the description. In both messages, CARES shared emergency numbers and resources to contact if the perpetrator was seen.
When asked for comment on the assault and public safety around campus, the College directed The Bulletin to the NYPD’s Deputy Commissioner of Public Information (DCPI).
In a statement from the DCPI, the police responded to a 911 call of a female who had “a laceration behind the ear.” The victim, a 21-year-old Barnard student, was taken to Mount Sinai’s Morningside hospital and is reported to be in stable condition.
Eva Kates (BC ’29) witnessed the aftermath of the attack, and described a heavy police presence on 116th Street. Kates stated that she witnessed a girl with blood on her neck being accompanied by her friend.
“It was really horrible, but I think it was just a freak accident,” Kates told The Bulletin.
According to Barnard’s Annual Security and Fire Safety Report, the College reported five criminal incidents—including one case of aggravated assault in 2025—and six criminal incidents in 2024. None of the incidents in 2024 were categorized as aggravated assault, which was defined in the report as an “unlawful attack by one person upon another for the purpose of inflicting severe or aggravated bodily injury.”
The investigation into the attack remains ongoing, with the DCPI stating that no arrests had been made.
