Criminal Justice
Policy
How the population at Rikers Island can be reduced now
Here are the avenues Gov. Kathy Hochul and New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio can immediately pursue to release more inmates, according to lawmakers and advocates.
Criminal Justice
Policy
What does criminal justice reform look like to Kathy Hochul?
The governor has reservations about “defund the police” that her No. 2, Brian Benjamin, doesn’t seem to share.
Interviews & Profiles
Personality
What Assembly Member Jessica González-Rojas saw at Rikers
Queens legislators are calling on New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, Gov. Kathy Hochul and prosecutors to take immediate steps to address overcrowding on Rikers Island.
Criminal Justice
Policy
The police are watching you, and some lawmakers aren’t happy about it
Concerns about police surveillance hardly begin and end with “digidog.”
Criminal Justice
Politics
Chauvin guilty on all counts
New York lawmakers react after a jury convicted the former Minneapolis police officer of murdering George Floyd.
NYPD
Policy
Should cops have to live in NYC?
It could improve community relations, but unions object and even some reform advocates are unenthused.
NYPD
Policy
Why New York City hasn’t gotten police overtime under control
The NYPD has blown past its nominal cap for years without consequence.
New York State
Policy
How virtual court could be harming defendants
An essential human element of the justice system may be lost when proceedings happen remotely.
Criminal Justice
Policy
Will jails let inmates access medically assisted treatment for drug addiction?
Most New York jails don’t allow the treatment, but there’s a bill to change that.
New York State
Policy
State Legislature moves to restore voting rights to parolees
The state Senate has passed the decade-old bill for the first time since its introduction
Criminal Justice
Policy
Bail reform reduced jail populations, but racial disparities worsened
New report details how the criminal justice system changed during the pandemic.
Andrew Cuomo
Policy
How Cuomo’s and the Legislature’s marijuana legalization plans differ
A point-by-point guide to the competing proposals.
Criminal Justice
Policy
Can legalizing pot help communities heal?
Lawmakers and advocates fear that Cuomo’s proposal won’t.
Criminal Justice
Policy
Rochester’s new Person in Crisis team might have prevented 9-year-old’s pepper spraying
Even though the city created a non-police unit to deal with individuals in emotional distress, they weren’t on the scene.
Criminal Justice
Policy
Why aren’t state prisoners being vaccinated yet?
New York goes against CDC recommendations by not vaccinating corrections officers and inmates at the same time.
Criminal Justice
Policy
State Legislature may restore voting rights to parolees
Gov. Andrew Cuomo has done it through executive order, but this would make the change permanent.
Criminal Justice
Policy
Sheldon Silver’s many prison sentences
The former Assembly speaker is finally serving time – and he’s staying in prison.
Criminal Justice
Policy
Putting Cuomo’s small-town police reform praise into perspective
An annotated press release of the governor’s statement on the village of Lowville “reinventing and modernizing” its police department.
Criminal Justice
Policy