NYC Mayor Adams’ Call For Action On Bail Reforms Pitting Progressives Against Moderates



ALBANY — Mayor Adams’ plan to address gun violence in the city following the death of two NYPD officers is dividing Democrats and sparking renewed debate over recently enacted bail reforms.

The new mayor called on state lawmakers to amend bail laws to make it easier to prosecute gun crimes and give judges more discretion when setting bail.

While willing to sit down with Adams to discuss the issue, Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins (D-Yonkers) on Tuesday maintained her stance that reforms “on some level have been working” and called for more time to assess the changes.

“We did not just wake up and say, ‘oh we have to tinker with bail.’ We did the reforms because there was a disparity in treatment,” she said.

The Democratic-led Legislature approved sweeping changes to New York’s bail laws in 2019, limiting pretrial detention for most nonviolent crimes to make the system more equitable. The overhauls were amended in 2020 to make more serious offenses bail-eligible, such as criminally negligent homicide and manslaughter.

Law enforcement groups and Republican lawmakers have hammered Dems over the changes, drawing a direct link to increases in crime.

Stewart-Cousins said more information is needed to assess the situation and noted that recently released data revealed only 2% of those out on bail are rearrested for a violent crime.

Adams specifically called lawmakers to allow judges to consider a defendant’s dangerousness when deciding whether they should be detained, which was not allowed even before the 2019 changes.

To see more CLICK HERE.


Comments

Post a Comment

Most Read Posts Over The Last 30 Days

Episode No. 75- All Hat and No Cattle- Digging Into Pseudo Studies Issued by Activist Groups with Guest Eric Granof

Image
How do you navigate the space in the bail reform debate when law enforcement and activists seem to be arguing contrary positions.  One example is the debate over defunding the police.  A study that was highlighted on Episode No. 71 of our podcast demonstrated that defunding the police increases crime immediately not only in the area that the police are removed from but the surrounding area as well.   Also, taking the police out of the community resulted in litigation that resulted in judgments against the city totaling over $32 million dollars. Nevertheless, activists continue to argue that defunding the police will actually make communities safer. How do we navigate between these two positions.  When activists have flooded google with pseudo studies that defy common sense how do we debunk them and find the real science? This is the subject of this episode of The Bail Post. Audio Podcast- Also available on- Apple Podcasts-          ...
Read more

Episode No. 74- Study: Defunding the Police Increase Murders Especially for Minorities with Guest Dr. Ben Hansen

Image
Dr. Benjamin Hansen is the W.E. Minor Professor of Economics at the University of Oregon.  He is also the head of the Economics Department.  He Graduated from Birmingham Young University in 2004 with a B.A. in Economics.  He received his M.A. in Economics in 2005 and his PhD in Economics in 2009 from UC Santa Barbara. Dr. Hansen co-authored an article that is the subject of this episode of The Bail Post.  The citation for the article is:  Chalfin, Hansen, Weisburst and Williams, "Police Force Size and Civilian Race,"  American Economic Review:  Insights 4 (2); 139-58 (2022). The article addressed defunding the police and its impact on crime.  One of the conclusions of the study was that decreasing the size of the police force will increase murder rates and that will disproportionately negatively impact certain minority groups.  This means that decreasing the size of police will result in more murders and the number will increase even more for...
Read more

Meet the New President of PBT- Irma Montemayor

Image
Is 2024 the Year of the Woman for the Professional Bondsmen of Texas?  At the recent annual meeting, Irma Montemayor was elected president of PBT.  She will serve for the next two years.  She is only the third woman to be elected President.  She has been involved in the bonding industry since she was 18. "It is my goal to continue to build on the legacy those before me have formed through hard work and dedication.  I pray for the wisdom in all my decisions and pledge to seek guidance and advise from those willing to collaborate in order to continue making PBTx the model association for the rest of the  Country.  God Bless the great State of Texas!" Irma has served in many different capacities.  She has been a member of the executive team as the secretary.  She has served as convention chair and in many other roles.   Irma is licensed in Hidalgo County and her bonding company is A-Fast Bail Bonds.  Join us in congratulating Irma...
Read more

NYC Mayor Elect Promises To Appoint Tougher Judges Amid NYC Bail-Reform Debate

Image
Mayor-elect Eric Adams promised Wednesday that his judicial appointments overseeing criminal arraignments in the Big Apple will be far more willing to test the limits of the state’s controversial bail reform laws. Adams made the promise during an appearance on “The View,” where he was repeatedly pressed on recent high profile cases where repeat offenders were returned to communities only to be quickly rearrested after allegedly committing yet another crime. “I appoint criminal court judges and I’m going to be extremely clear: If you don’t understand that my city must be safe, and you can’t get caught up in the politics in this city,” Adams said on the ABC show. “And you must make sure that those who pose an imminent threat to our city — they are not going to be placed back on my streets and back into my community,” he said. When asked if he had the authority to do that as mayor, Adams doubled down: “That’s the power of appointing the right judges.” As mayor, Adams has the power to appo...
Read more

Stories by Topic:

Show more