Rush to Judgment

State Senate Democrats have apparently settled on changes to the 2019 bail reform law, which eliminated the possibility of cash bail except for defendants facing a narrow list of charges. Critics say last year's changes in the bail law deprived judges of discretion to protect public safety and are major contributors to a spike in crime: Through February 9, index felony crime was up 16 percent in the city.

The governor has signaled he supports the Senate move. Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, however, is suggesting everyone slow down. After all, the reforms are only 45 days old.

The mainstream critics of last year's criminal justice reform bills admit that some reform to the state's previous bail and discovery laws was necessary—it just went too far, they say. In other words, after tolerating a system that, by their own admission, perverted justice for decades, they now want to change it before even two months of crime data are in.

Fact is, the state's old bail law never explicitly empowered judges to detain people before trial out of concern for “dangerousness.” Instead, according to fans of the old system, flight risk was used as a crude proxy for dangerousness and cash bail was the tool to address it—at least for those too poor to pay.

Last year, some in the legislature did consider adding a dangerousness provision to the bail reforms. Critics say lawmakers rushed the process and ignored that option. The process certainly was quick. But it's also true that giving judges discretion to determine dangerousness is very tricky territory, especially when tabloid newspapers are prone to excoriate jurists who let the “wrong people” out.

New York's 2019 reforms might need revising; they might even have been rushed. Yet common sense suggests the stupidest thing to do now is rush the fixes, especially when the conversation around crime has become so unhinged. A Nassau County official falsely blamed the state's discovery reforms for the murder of a witness. The head of one police union has declared war on City Hall. Another police union leader says the bail law is not to blame, rather it's Bill de Blasio's “failed leadership,” but he also says the previous administration's stop-and-frisk policy—which de Blasio all but ended—was “misguided.”

And then there are the crime stats. Yes, the numbers in several categories are up compared with last year. But several index crimes rose in 2019, before the reform laws kicked. Some elements of the 2020 spike, like the 65 percent increase in auto thefts, seem to reflect national trends. And temporary spikes have happened before. The Bloomberg era is remembered for a steady fall in crime reports, but three of Mayor Mike's years saw significant bumps in the murder count—11 percent in 2006, 5 percent in 2008 and 14 percent in 2010. Does anyone remember a “public safety emergency” being declared then?

- Jarrett Murphy, executive editor

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