Authorizes certain persons confined in institutions operated by the department of corrections and community supervision to apply for a sentence reduction

Showing the cosponsors who are on Agora, A to Z. The official record may list more.

• Democratic91

Shown in neutral colors by design; Agora is non-partisan.

◆ The sponsor's argument

Why Julia Salazar says this is needed

New York continues to incarcerate thousands of people pursuant to sentences of a decade or more, and most of these people are Black and Latinx. Many were sentenced pursuant to mandatory minimum sentencing provisions, including two-and three-strike laws, which prohibit judges from utilizing any discretion and considering the individual being sentenced. No mechanism currently exists for judges to reconsider these sentences. This Act will provide these individuals with an opportunity to demonstrate to a judge that they have changed and to ask for extreme and disparate sentences to be reconsidered to account for not only the individual but also new laws, scientific research, and norms. Providing a second look for these individuals allows New York to address the issue of lengthy and harsh sentences, to recognize the profound rehabilitative work in which many individuals engage while incarcerated, and saves New York the high financial costs of unnecessarily caging a person in the state prison system. These dollars can be reinvested in community-based and prison-based programs designed to effectively counter recidivism. The concept of providing individuals serving long prison sentences the opportunity to have a judge give a "second look" and consider reducing the sentence is supported by the New York State Justice Task Force, initially established in May 2009 by then Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman, and continued by Chief Judge Janet DiFiore, who expanded the Task Force's mission to promote fairness, effectiveness, and efficiency in the criminal justice system, and then continued by Hon. Rowan D. Wilson when he was confirmed as Chief Judge of the State of New York in 2023. The Task Force's 2024 Report, "Recommendations on Second Look Sentencing Reform", specifically endorsed "second look" legislation such as repres- ented by this bill. "Second look" reform has also been supported by the American Bar Association and the NYS Bar Association, and by numerous judges. (For example, see: "Long Prison Terms Deserve a Second Look and 'a Little Humanity,' Judge Argues", NY Times, 9/9/2024, reporting on a new book by U.S. District Court Judge Frederic Bloc endorsing the concept and necessity of providing "second look" opportunities to indi- viduals serving lengthy sentences.) SOCIAL AND RACIAL JUSTICE IMPACT: The population of individuals serving lengthy prison sentences in New York reflects stark racial disparities - with people of color represent- ing a disproportionately high percentage of those serving such sentences. Not only are racial disparities reflected in the absolute numbers of people serving such sentences, such racial disparities are also reflected in imposition of lengthy sentences. Statistics compiled by the NYS Division of Criminal Justice Services show that in 2019, while Black people made up 15% of the state's popu- lation, they accounted for 38% of arrests, 45% of felony arrests, and 48% of those sentenced to prison. Similarly, Latinx people made up 18% of the population, yet accounted for 24% of arrests, 24% of felony arrests, and 23% of those sentenced to prison. A 2021 report prepared by The Sentencing Project, "The Color of Justice, Racial and Ethnic Dispar- ity in State Prisons", found that New York had one of the highest rates of racial disparities in imprisonment in the country - Black people are sentenced to prison in New York at 7.9 times the rate of white people and Latinx people are sentenced to prison in New York at 3 times the rate of whites. The disproportionate imposition of harsh and lengthy prison sentences on people of color causes harm to individuals, fami- lies, and communities. By creating opportunities for lengthy sentences to get a second look and to be reduced if certain criteria are met, this bill would represent an important step for New York in taking account of and addressing the history of racially disparate sentences and harsh sentences. This would also provide encouragement and support for indi-

This is the sponsor's own case for the bill, quoted from their memorandum. It is not Agora's description of what the bill does.