Mayor Bill de Blasio says courts are responsible for high crime in New York

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Mayor Bill de Blasio blamed the city’s high crime rate on the courts in all five boroughs on Monday, revealing that they had delivered just 18 criminal verdicts in the first half of this year.

The surprisingly low number compared to 405 during the same pre-pandemic period in 2019.

Whether it’s something as horrific as murder or gun violence, you need a culture of consequences, de Blasio said Monday during his daily press briefing remotely from town hall.

The dysfunctional justice system has a greater impact than almost any other factor today. The absence of these consequences for a whole series of crimes compromises public safety, he said.

The city’s crime outlook is bleak. Filming remains up 5.3% compared to the same period last year. Murders are close to the number of 299 last year, up from 303 around the same time in 2020 and those numbers represent a peak of almost 40% from 2019. Criminal assaults have also increased by 5%.

De Blasio said he had offered to help bring the justice system back from the pandemic by providing more space, vaccines and other measures – but court officials refused help.

Lucian Chalfen, spokesperson for the Office of Courts Administration, pushed back the mayor’s indictment against the judiciary – then put the blame on another element of the criminal justice system.

His enlightening rhetoric regarding court operations in an attempt to change the public safety debate continues, Chalfen said.

Mayor de Blasio said the city’s crime spree could be linked to the lack of court verdicts this year.

The court system has regained its strength with all judges and staff fully back in person in courthouses since May. Trials do take place, but in order for cases to go to trial you need the prosecution and defense to prepare their cases, which does not happen in a number of counties.

Yet although he blamed district attorneys for much of the slowdown, Chalfen admitted that the OCA was limiting the number of trials to three at any time in each county to allow for social distancing. For example, at least two courtrooms are occupied per trial, one as a trial court and the other as a jury room.

Before the pandemic, there was no limit to the number of trials that could take place simultaneously, and the Brooklyn Supreme Court often hosted up to 12 at a time, a source said.

But those limits alone don’t account for the massive drop in verdicts from 405 in the first half of 2019 to just 18 in the first part of this year.

Last summer, de Blasio and then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo blamed each other for the increase in crime in the city, with the mayor pointing the finger at the state-controlled justice system.

De Blasio admitted that he had not yet raised the issue with Governor Hochul since she took office last week, although he plans to discuss it with her soon.

Several groups representing the defendants have rejected Chalfens’ claim that they are not ready for trial. Representatives of district attorneys declined to comment or did not respond to questions.

“I take issue with the fact that we are not working on our cases, that is not true, we are,” said Yung-Mi Lee, general counsel at Brooklyn Defender Services.

Brooklyn Supreme Court Holds Up to 12 Trials Concurrently Before COVID-19 Pandemic, Sources Say Paul Martinka

Instead, she said it was difficult to conduct jury trials because it just wasn’t safe.

“Due to the pandemic, it is extremely difficult to bring in jurors and maintain social distancing.

Lori Zeno, executive director of Queens Defenders, agreed.

“The first reason the courts had to slow down was that the court buildings weren’t safe, I guess that’s another practical fact that the OCA overlooks. They did not have adequate ventilation and therefore anyone entering courthouses was at risk of contracting COVID. “

Zeno applauded the OCA for implementing new safety measures, including a vaccine requirement for court workers, but said it was appalling court officials tried to blame the slowdown to prosecutors and defense lawyers because they did not set the trial timetable.

Tina Luongo, senior criminal defense attorney for the Legal Aid Society, said the mayors’ blame was also misplaced.

Blaming the courts for the reported increase in crime is absurd and without any evidence, Luongo said.

Public defenders have represented clients all this time and have worked tirelessly to provide our clients with the due process they deserve and the guarantees of the Constitution, said Luongo.

Additional reporting by Craig McCarthy

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