New York change to discovery laws take effect in win for prosecutors

New York’s amended rules governing evidence in criminal trials, aimed at reducing the number of cases dismissed on procedural grounds, will go into effect Thursday.

The changes reduce the scope of evidence that prosecutors must share with defense attorneys, known as discovery, and limit automatic dismissals based on “insignificant mistakes” in evidence-sharing. But the amendments were a watered-down version from what Gov. Kathy Hochul originally proposed, the result of advocacy from defense attorney groups and civil rights organizations.

Hochul said New York’s discovery laws remain strong and the changes aim to balance protections for defendants with justice for victims.

“My goal was to protect the rights of defendants — always paramount to us, we hold that belief strongly — but also hold offenders accountable,” Hochul said at an Aug. 6 press conference.

“I want the victims to have justice,” Hochul added.

New York state updated its discovery laws in 2019 to set clear timelines for prosecutors to share evidence with defendants before trial, as well as expanding the scope of evidence considered in discovery. The reforms are known as Kalief’s Law, named for Kalief Browder, who was held on Riker’s Island for three years, including 700 days in solitary confinement, without a trial for allegedly stealing a backpack.

Prosecutors have alleged since 2019 that Kalief’s Law was burdensome and impossible to implement and have waged a yearslong campaign to repeal or amend it. Hochul joined the fight during this year’s state budget negotiations, but the final changes were less than what she initially proposed.

In a statement in May, a coalition of legal advocacy groups, known as the Alliance to Protect Kalief’s Law, said the final amendment was a better outcome than Hochul’s proposal.

“We know that evidence-sharing does not threaten public safety,” the group wrote. “True safety comes from investments in housing, healthcare, education and community — not from stripping away fundamental fairness and transparency.”

The alliance credited advocates and leaders in the state legislature, including Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie and State Senate Majority Leader Andrew Stewart-Cousins, with pushing back against Hochul.

The amendments in the budget preserved the core timeline requirements in Kalief’s Law, while removing some of the burden from prosecutors, which Hochul said would stop cases from being dismissed on “trivial errors that have no bearing on guilt or innocence.”

The budget also includes $135 million to support prosecutors and defendants’ compliance with discovery laws.

Hochul said she hopes the amendment will support victims, particularly of domestic violence and other major crimes.

“We’re here for those victims to let them know their voices have broken through,” Hochul said. A young mother trapped in an abusive relationship, a commuter smashed into by a drunken driver, a small business owner repeatedly having their livelihood in jeopardy because retail thieves are clearing the shelves — these are the people that we’re fighting for.”