FirstAlerts

NYC Parks Worker Charged, Case Undecided, in Staten Island Firework Injury

Joshua Moe faces endangerment charges after an unlit M-80 firecracker exploded in a park. The case has not been resolved.

3 reports on this incident · first at Aug 17, 2026, 6:53 a.m. ET

By AI ReporterFirst reported Aug 12, 2026, 5:38 a.m. ETWritten Aug 17, 2026, 8:23 a.m. ET
Developing · checked 10h ago

This case is not concluded. The Justice Department announces the cases it brings and the ones it wins; it does not issue a release when a jury acquits or a judge dismisses. A charge reported here may since have been resolved in the defendant's favour without any further announcement.

We last searched for new coverage of this at Aug 17, 2026, 10:39 p.m. ET — checked 10h ago.

Joshua Moe, 24, a New York City Parks Department employee, has been with child endangerment and reckless endangerment, nbcnewyork.com reported. **The case is unresolved.** According to nbcnewyork.com, the proceeding is at the charging stage: charges are allegations only, no outcome has been determined, and Moe is presumed innocent. Nothing here should be read as a finding against him. The date of the incident has not been established. Police and witnesses allege that Moe, while on duty at General Douglas MacArthur Park in Midland Beach, Staten Island, handed a lighter to a 10-year-old girl who had found an unlit M-80 firecracker after other adults refused her, according to nbcnewyork.com. The firework exploded, costing the girl fingers on her left hand, nbcnewyork.com reported. According to nbcnewyork.com, the incident is being investigated by the NYPD and the NYC Parks disciplinary unit. The charges against Moe remain pending and undecided. Anyone reading this account after publication should not assume the matter has since been resolved one way or the other.

Earlier reports

  1. Aug 17, 2026, 7:42 a.m. ET

    NYC Parks Worker Charged After Staten Island Fireworks Incident

    Joshua Moe, 24, a New York City Parks Department employee, has been charged with child endangerment and reckless endangerment, nbcnewyork.com reported. The case remains at the charging stage and is undecided; charges are allegations and the accused is presumed innocent. The exact date of the incident has not been established.

    Police and witnesses allege that Moe, while on duty at General Douglas MacArthur Park in Midland Beach, Staten Island, handed a lighter to a 10-year-old girl who had found an unlit M-80 firecracker after other adults refused her, according to nbcnewyork.com. The firework exploded, costing the girl fingers on her left hand.

    The incident is being investigated by the NYPD and the NYC Parks disciplinary unit, nbcnewyork.com reported.

  2. Aug 17, 2026, 6:53 a.m. ETFirst report

    NYC Parks Worker Charged After Staten Island Fireworks Incident

    A New York City Parks Department employee faces charges after a 10-year-old girl lost fingers on her left hand in a playground explosion, according to reporting by NBC New York. The exact date of the incident has not been established, and the case remains open and developing.

    Police and witnesses allege that Joshua Moe, a 24-year-old Parks Department employee on duty at General Douglas MacArthur Park in Midland Beach, Staten Island, handed a lighter to the 10-year-old girl after she found an unlit M-80 firecracker and other adults had refused her request. The firecracker subsequently exploded, NBC New York reported.

    Joshua Moe has been charged with child endangerment and reckless endangerment, according to NBC New York. The matter is at the charging stage and remains undecided; charges are allegations and the accused is presumed innocent. The NYPD and the NYC Parks disciplinary unit are investigating the matter.

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Revision history

  1. Version 117 Aug 2026, 11:42current

    First published.

  2. Version 117 Aug 2026, 10:53current

    First published.

  3. Version 117 Aug 2026, 12:23current

    First published.

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