Family members of those who have perished inside city jails penned a letter Friday to the Governor and fellow lawmakers urging them to not pursue legislation they believe will lead to a bloated prison system and, ultimately, more deaths.
Melania Brown, Akeem Browder, and many more who have been bound together through the pain of losing a loved one behind bars have dedicated their lives to preventing other families from experiencing that same grief. However, these brothers and sisters, mothers and fathers, sons and daughters turned activists now believe there will be a lot more grief spread if the Governor continues her present course.
Critics are in an uproar over the governor’s plans to roll back bail reform, alter discovery procedures, allow judges to take dangerousness into account, raise the age for gun charges, and other changes that target repeat offenders. This comes as many New Yorkers throughout the city decry an unbridled level of gun crime.
Governor Hochul and Lt. Gov. Brian Benjamin recently wrote an op-ed for the Daily News calling for bail reform to be amended not blamed for the state of crime in New York City. The duo stated that officers should be allowed to make arrests and not be limited when charging repeat offenders committing crimes while on pretrial release. When arraigned, they also write that a judge should be allowed to set bail, even if the crime is not eligible for bail (such as illegal guns given or sold to minors).
In addition, Hocul calls for stricter pre-trial conditions for violent and gun crimes, as well asa misdemeanor re-arrests provision, which has many advocates for incarcerated individual rights fearful that this will vastly increase an already crowded system. In her plan, misdemeanor re-arrests could potentially have individuals sent to Rikers awaiting pre-trial cases for fare evasion re-arrests.
Hochul is said to be proposing these policies in her April budget, which are in line with Mayor Eric Adams’ controversial Blueprint to End Gun Violence.
In an effort to change the Governor’s mind, families of those who died inside infamous lockups such as Rikers Island joined as one to draft and submit a letter to the head of state pleading for Hochul to reconsider.
In the letter obtained by amNewYork Metro, the authors shared harrowing details regarding their lost loved ones.
“My brother Kalief Browder was locked on Rikers Island at 16 years old because he could not afford $3000 bail. He was jailed for three years while being denied discovery, and repeatedly refused to take plea deals because of his innocence, before prosecutors dismissed all charges against him and he came home. The trauma he endured, from solitary confinement to officer brutality, was too much for him to bear and he died by suicide,” Akeem Browder wrote.
According to many of those who lent their names to the letter, the lack of being able to afford bail is what led to what the families say were unnecessary deaths.
“My sister Layleen Polanco was locked on Rikers Island because she could not afford $500 bail. She was locked in solitary confinement against medical objections. She had a seizure while in solitary, and was left to die,” Melania Brown wrote.
The letter also emphasized that Black and LatinX individuals will be most impacted by Hocul’s proposed legislation.
amNewYork Metro reached out to the governor’s office and is awaiting a response.