More than half of all traffic infractions in Manhattan were tossed out of court last year while the borough’s overall dismissal rate for drunk-driving and other felony vehicular offenses rocketed to 15% — more than double 2019’s dismissals, disturbing new records show.
Critics blamed the startling statistics on a controversial evidence reform law enacted by state lawmakers — one even soft-of-crime Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg concedes is a big problem.
The new “discovery” law has overwhelmed New York’s criminal justice system since its inception in 2020 by forcing prosecutors to turn over all evidence related to alleged felonies and misdemeanors within just 15 days of arraignments for traffic infractions and other petty offenses and within 20 to 35 days for many other crimes.
Previously, state law only required discovery if the defense requested it in writing — and there was no hard time frame.
The new rules have wrought havoc when it comes to DWI prosecutions.
For instance, prosecutors must validate the calibration of breathalyzer machines: a time-consuming process that requires gathering and reviewing documents often created by private entities, and one that often exceeds the 15-day deadline.
Dismissal rates in Manhattan for traffic felonies — which include DWI — tripled from 6% in 2019 to 18% in 2021 — even though the number of DWI and DUI arrests plummeted during the period from 953 to 314.
The borough saw a slight improvement last year as the traffic-felony dismissal rate dropped to 15%, but it’s back at 18% so far this year, according to records. The Manhattan DA’s office could not immediately provide dismissal rates specifically for drunk-driving cases.
In 2019, the Manhattan DA’s office, then under Cy Vance, saw just 18% of all vehicles and traffic law (VTL) cases tossed on technicalities or for other reasons, but records show the numbers rose to 44% a year later once the new discovery requirements went into effect.
In 2021, 50% were dismissed, and in 2022 — Bragg’s first year as DA — dismissal rates climbed to 51%.
“Our state legislators have created the Bizarro World where law-abiding citizens and law enforcement is bad, and committing crimes is good,” said City Councilman Robert Holden, a moderate Democrat.
“Thanks to changes in discovery laws, those who choose to drink and drive can now get away with it, putting innocent lives at risk and making our roads less safe.”
Bragg — who once championed the evidence reform law — said in a statement that he hopes to work with his fellow progressive Democratic “legislative partners” in Albany “to find commonsense fixes that promote safety, fairness and efficiency.”
“I firmly support the intent of the … discovery reforms, but the law has put an overwhelming burden on our prosecutors,” he said. “As a result, thousands of our cases have been dismissed for legal technicalities unrelated to the substance of the case.”
The discovery law was part of a larger legislative package approved by lefty pols that included bail reform — which Bragg continues to support — and which is widely blamed for fueling crime by putting suspected bad guys back on the streets.
While Bragg insists his hands are tied, some legal experts are not buying his excuses — given what they describe is his long history of catering to criminals, and other far-left causes.
“I take what DA Bragg said with a grain of salt,” said defense lawyer Paul D’Emilia, a former prosecutor for the Brooklyn DA’s office.
“This is not a DA whose top priority is prosecuting crime, so I think that’s an easy excuse. DA Bragg doesn’t seem to need much of an excuse to dismiss cases.
“I don’t think they’re prioritizing these cases,” added D’Emilia. “If you’re somebody who has been victimized by a drunk driver, that’s a very real situation, and it’s no less than getting mugged on the street.”
Lance Fletcher, a DWI defense attorney and former prosecutor, said there’s little doubt discovery laws are compounding an ongoing issue of short-staffing in all five of the city’s district attorneys offices. He said the laws are “very defense-friendly,” adding he got two cases tossed this past week over “discovery failure.”
“Prosecutors who are handling DWI cases are very busy, and it’s challenging for them to turn over the material,” said Fletcher.
Additional reporting by Tina Moore