To Protect Families, Harckham Co-sponsors Bail Bill Amendment

Senator Pete Harckham, 40th Senate District announced he was co-sponsoring S.6407, a bill to protect public safety while still advancing historic criminal justice reform progress made earlier this year. This bill adds to the list of qualifying offenses over which judges have discretion to determine the pre-trial requirements for certain criminal defendants, to protect the public from crimes that pose a credible and identifiable safety threat. The limited offenses being added include manslaughter, sex crimes including against children, terrorism related charges, high-level Class A felony drug crimes related to drug trafficking, and bribery offenses involving public officials. The bill focuses on individuals, whose release is guaranteed without the allowance of judicial discretion, who could pose a threat to public safety.

The bill maintains the intent of the historic criminal justice reforms, advanced by the Democratic Majority earlier this year, to move towards a more fair and just society, which includes the elimination of cash bail for most low-level crimes. The measure would ensure that judges are given the discretion to hold or require bail for individuals who could pose a clear threat to public safety. The limited charges — added to the list of qualifying offenses for which judges will have discretion to determine the pre-trial requirements — are egregious examples wherein an individual’s automatic release without bail poses an imminent, clear or credible threat to public safety.

Senator Pete Harckham said, “The safety of my constituents is always top of mind and that’s why I’m supporting this common sense measure to give judges discretion to determine pre-trial requirements for violent offenders, where automatic release without bail could put the public at risk. Serious, repeat offenders should not be automatically released back into the public in the interest of protecting our families and communities.”

Mike Hagan, President of the Westchester County PBA, said, “The Westchester County PBA, an organization which represents about 300 police officers, supports this important piece of public safety legislation. Violent offenders should not be automatically released onto the streets; that should be left to a judge's discretion. The safety of our communities is at stake and we believe that this bill should be passed quickly."

Gary Greenberg, Founder of the Fighting for Children PAC, said, “This year New York has passed historic legislation protecting children and adults from sexual offenders. This bill maintains that progress while simultaneously ensuring that offenders of the most egregious crimes, including sexual crimes against young children, are not automatically released without bail into society. Sexual predators must be kept off our streets and Judges need the latitude to do just that. I am calling for immediate passage of this bill to close these gross oversights made before January 1st, 2020 so that we continue to take all measures to protect the public from sexual predators.”

A list of qualifying offenses that this bill addresses includes:

• Assault in the third degree as defined in section 120.00 of the penal law
• Failure to register as a sex offender section 168-t of corrections law
• Aggravated assault upon a person less than eleven years old as defined in section 120.12 of the penal law
• Patronizing a person for prostitution in a school zone as defined in section 230.08 of the penal law
• Criminal possession of a weapon on school grounds section 265.01A of penal law
• Certain offenses related to organized crime including enterprise corruption as defined in section 460.20 of the penal law
• Directing a laser at an aircraft section 240.77
• Aggravated vehicular assault as defined in section 120.04-a of the penal law
• Criminally negligent homicide
• Manslaughter in the second degree as defined in section 125.15 of the penal law
• Certain offense against public order, public sensibilities and the right to privacy including aggravated harassment in the first degree as defined in section 240.31
• All class-A felony drug related crimes, which can be related to drug trafficking