Brooklyn Defenders issued the following statement in response to Governor Hochul and the District Attorneys Association of the State of New York’s press conference on New York’s discovery laws:

“After years of debate and collaboration between impacted people, exonerees, prosecutors, defense attorneys, and policymakers, New York enacted a discovery statute in 2019 to enhance fairness in the criminal legal system, ensuring people accused of crimes have timely and complete access to evidence in their cases.

However, a new proposal put forth by the Governor, drafted in collaboration with only prosecutors and law enforcement, would effectively repeal this law, bringing New York back to an era of coerced pleas, wrongful convictions, and pre-trial delays.

Despite the claims of prosecutors and the governor, there are no loopholes or technicalities that allow for meritless dismissals. Dismissals based on discovery violations, representing a miniscule percentage of cases, occur only when prosecutors make little to no efforts to comply with the discovery mandates.

Even more shocking are claims that connect evidence sharing to recidivism. Sharing evidence with people accused of crimes does not contribute to a cycle of re-arrest or make our communities unsafe. Instead of repealing a statute that works, lawmakers should focus on efforts that actually make our communities safer: resources.

Additionally, a bill pending in the legislature that provides prosecutors with direct access to police evidence databases would streamline evidence sharing and uphold the promise of a fair and just discovery system.

As this legislative session continues, we urge lawmakers to focus on efforts that actually strengthen our communities and reject this proposal to repeal New York’s discovery laws.”

Read the full press release here.