Christian evangelist anti-abortion preacher Benjamin "Ben" Schettler says what started as a routine evening of public preaching in Washington Square Park on Thursday ended with a trip to the emergency room, a concussion, and a stolen phone.
Schettler, who regularly ministers in public spaces, says he was speaking in the park when he was surrounded and assaulted. According to his wife and his own posts, he was struck multiple times and had his phone taken during the encounter before being taken by ambulance to the hospital. He later described dealing with blurred vision, sensitivity to light, and neck and head pain.
On social platform X, Schettler wrote that he was "surrounded by a mob" and hit several times, and he shared short video clips from the chaotic scene. X includes the night-of updates he posted about the assault.
Who Is Schettler
Schettler is president and co‑founder of the Center for Truth in Love and hosts the Biblical Worldview Show, work that, by design, takes him into public squares and onto campuses, according to his organization. The group’s website, The Center for Truth in Love, lists public speaking and outreach as central parts of his ministry.
Family Update and Footage
In a written update, Makenzie Schettler said doctors diagnosed her husband with a concussion and cautioned that the symptoms could worsen a prior traumatic brain injury. She also said the phone taken during the assault was later tracked to an ecoATM kiosk and recovered, and that it contains footage of the attack.
As reported by The Western Journal, the family hopes that recovered video will help detectives identify the people involved.
What the Law Says
Under New York law, robbery is defined as "forcible stealing." If property is taken by force or threat during a larceny, the offense can be elevated to robbery. Separate assault charges depend on how serious the injuries are and what prosecutors say the attacker intended.
New York Penal Law lays out the offense of robbery and related crimes in Article 160, while Article 120 covers the degrees of assault.
Park Context and Next Steps
Washington Square Park, a central gathering spot in Greenwich Village, has seen its share of recent crowd clashes and scuffles, and detectives there are increasingly used to piecing together cases from cellphone clips and bystander footage. Local reporting, including coverage that has documented similar crowd incidents this year, has highlighted how quickly tensions can flare in the park’s tight quarters.
For now, the Schettler family is asking for privacy and prayers as he recovers. They say detectives currently have his recovered phone and that the footage is under review, which the family hopes will lead to arrests, according to The Western Journal.
