Why Does Our Justice System Fight So Hard to Keep Innocent People Behind Bars?
Mark Godsey was a “prosecutor’s prosecutor” who didn’t think there were any innocent people in prison. Then he began supervising his law school’s Innocence Project, and realized his assumptions were all wrong. By Joshua Holland
Criminal Justice Reform Package: Check out this link to the Article VII bill that includes the criminal justice reform package, including bail, speedy trial, and discovery legislative language (bail on pages 19-52, speedy trial on pages 8-18, discovery on pages 52-82). This Article VII Memorandum in Support has brief summaries of these bills on pages 6-10.
Dutchess County District Attorney William Grady considers recent policy shifts moving away from requesting monetary bail in misdemeanor and violations cases to be “somewhat misguided.”
ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — The military veterans playing cards in the Albany County jail wear the same orange uniforms as everyone else, with “INMATE” printed down the legs. But their service offers one distinct privilege: a special cellblock where they can work through problems they often share, such as substance use and post-traumatic stress disorder.
Rikers Guards Are Allegedly Sexually Abusing Visitors In Bathrooms!
In an effort to avoid newly-installed surveillance cameras in search areas, Rikers Island correctional officers take female visitors to nearby bathrooms to strip-search them, according to several women and a new report by the Jails Action Coalition. Five women have now filed notices of claim (which signal an intention to sue the city) with the city’s comptroller over their treatment in Rikers bathrooms, alleging that correctional officers sexually abused them.
Steps Toward Bail Reform Taken in Manhattan and Dutchess County
Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance’s policy shift came the same day as the New York Civil Liberties Union announced the filing of an extensive habeas corpus petition, under equal protection and due process principles, on behalf of a Dutchess County resident behind bars because he can’t afford bail. –New York Law Journal