Suffolk Reporter

In 2019, the Republican conferences in the New York State Legislature voiced strong opposition to the Bail and Discovery reform. This stance was based on the experience of members who were former prosecutors and attorneys. They predicted that the new laws would negatively impact New York's criminal justice system, especially since law enforcement stakeholders were not consulted during the drafting process.

The discovery reform legislation introduced new requirements for prosecutor's offices, creating administrative burdens with short timeframes for reviewing and disclosing information from criminal cases. This led to an increase in case dismissals due to technicalities.

Since changes took effect in 2020, District Attorneys have struggled with these requirements due to inadequate staff and resources. Although subsequent state budgets provided some funding, it was insufficient to meet demands.

Senator Zellnor Myrie and Assemblyman Micah Lasher recently commented on this issue, but their surprise at increased case dismissals is seen as disingenuous by some. Concerns about discovery have been raised since 2019 by Senate Republicans, law enforcement groups, court employees, and District Attorneys' Offices.

The law also compromised witness privacy by giving defendants access to personal information and crime scenes. This has discouraged witnesses from cooperating and affected victims of crimes.

These policies are believed to have contributed to increased crime rates and decreased arrests, affecting public confidence and safety. Both Republicans and Democrats have expressed concerns over five years but were ignored by the Democrat-controlled legislature.

A proposed solution involves removing harsh consequences for non-compliance with time constraints in discovery reform. Allowing courts discretion in penalizing violations could help resolve issues without dismissing charges outright.

Changes should be made incrementally with input from all stakeholders. The exclusion of District Attorneys and law enforcement during drafting led to flawed policy outcomes. Recognition of these issues is a step towards fixing the discovery statute for justice and safety in New York.

"Bottom line," said Senator Tom O’Mara of Senate District 58 alongside Senator Anthony Palumbo of Senate District 1, "many of us agreed that changes needed to be made... Failing to include all stakeholders on an issue never results in good policy."