On July 8, 2015, Mayor Bill de Blasio proudly provided $ 17.8 million in funding to broaden the city-widemonitored release program. Announced in.This initiative expanded the judge's options beyond thecash bail setting, participated in community-based programming, lived a law-abiding life, and was directed by the judge.
At that time, as the Chief of Police, I fully supported the project and said: Accurately assess public security risks and provide the necessary supervision to prevent people from re-entering the criminal justice system.
I believed it at the time, but now I believe it. That's why I'm so disappointed with the state of the city's supervised release program.
I participated in the mayor's task force executive committee on behavioral health and the criminal justice system. That work led to the creation of the program. When Judge George A. Grasso, Co-Chair of the Task Force Working Group, who made this recommendation, presented it to the Executive Committee, he was very aware that the group was paying close attention to public safety. Clarified. Specifically, the Action Report released on December 2, 2014 created and implemented a "scientifically validated risk assessment tool""People who are not at high risk of re-offending or with supervision. Flight if registered for release. "
Initially The monitored release was a huge success in both pretrial reductions. Imprisonment andmaintaining public safety— Actually several years. The New York State Legislature then intervened and passed a series of laws. This, in my opinion, weakened the program.
Most importantly, the lawis most likely to set bail if the defendant fails to comply with a court order imposed as part of a supervised release contract. Eliminates judge authority. This is because these cases involve accusations of congressional crimes that were considered "unqualified"for bail. In such cases, if the defendant does not cooperate with the program's obligations, appears in court, oris re-arrested, the court is essentially incapable of acting. There is essentially no court leverage to obtain compliance from such defendants.
So it's not surprising that this once admirable program is now being abused on a daily basis. With tragic consequences.
Consider the case of Ramie Smith, who died last monthafter discovering two police officers holding guns in one of Bronx's most dangerous districts. Smith ran away after the police chased, then turned around and fired at them. He beatofficer Dennis Vargas,, and eventually recovered from his injury. However, Vargas's partner turned the fire back and killed Smith. Smith pleaded guilty to his previous gun charges, but was on the streets thanks to a psychotherapy programas an alternative to imprisonment, but he did not fully obey it.
Or this horror story last month:A few weeks before Andrew Abdullah allegedly killed Daniel Enriquez on the Q train, after a judge was arrested for stealing his car. I gave him a supervised release. Enriquez was heading to thebranch on Sunday. The murder was not completely provoked.
Creating a court program that does not provide judges with the authority necessary to ensure compliance undermines the respect of the court and the rule of law. These are exactly the conditions that lay the foundation for the significant increase in crime and violence in.
Congress also rejected the type of risk assessment tool recommended by the Task Force in 2014, giving priority to released under surveillance in cases involving violent felony. Mandated to do.To make matters worse, we are doing this without providing the service provider responsible for monitoring the defendantaccused of violent felony in the community.
I didn't have to do this. Public security and minimization of pretrial imprisonment are not mutually exclusive goals. Monitored releases were originally built and implemented that way.
Congress is really interested in a significant increase in crimeIf violence, intended in 2014, action must be taken immediately to regain appropriate authority over the judge to carry out the supervised release submitted to the mayor's executive committee. New York's security depends on it.
Former NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton said, "Occupation: A memoir of the American community, race, and police arc"
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