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Why Hundreds of New York City

artappraiser — Mon, 04 Apr 2022 20:15:33 +0000

In reply to [CRIME News] Video of beating of 67-yr. old Asian women in Yonkers

Why Hundreds of New York City Prosecutors Are Leaving Their Jobs

New burdens, low pay and pandemic malaise prompted the resignations of a fifth of the legal work force in Manhattan, the Bronx and Brooklyn

By Jonah E. Bromwich @ NYTimes.com, April 3, 202

New York City’s prosecutors are leaving in droves, citing pandemic burnout, low salaries and two intersecting laws that fundamentally changed the nature of their jobs.

“They just simply can’t do it anymore,” Darcel Clark, the Bronx district attorney, said in a Friday interview. “The money is not where it should be, and the work-life balance is just unmanageable.”

This year alone, 36 have left the Brooklyn district attorney’s office and 44 Manhattan’s. At least 28 have left the Bronx, and the nine Staten Island assistant district attorneys who have left this year represented about 10 percent of that office’s prosecutorial staff. The Queens office told the New York City Council that it was on track this year to more than double last year’s resignations.

In the past year, the Manhattan and Brooklyn district attorneys, who have about 500 prosecutors each, lost almost a fifth of that work force, a sharp increase from attrition averages before 2020. The Bronx is shedding lawyers at a similar pace, a total of 104 since July.

The district attorneys are replacing their previous employees when they can, often exchanging experienced prosecutors for untested ones.

When the pandemic arrived in New York two years ago, it disrupted nearly all court proceedings. At the same time, two new state laws took effect governing discovery — the sharing of all evidence, potential evidence and other case-related material. Prosecutors say the measures, which were intended to make trials fairer to defendants, create onerous amounts of paperwork.

The first law requires prosecutors to obtain and hand over hundreds of documents on many cases, a demanding task that can impede interviewing witnesses and otherwise preparing for court. A second law ties the handover of that material to the speedy trial clock, creating deadline pressure for prosecutors to collect all the material once charges are filed. (That law is known as Kalief’s law, named for Kalief Browder, a teenager who committed suicide after being held on Rikers Island for three years without a trial.)

For instance, if a defendant blew into a breathalyzer, a defense attorney is entitled to six months worth of calibration reports on that device. Prosecutors also have a continuing obligation to hand over a similar number of calibration reports filed after the defendant used the device.

The new laws aren’t the only reason for departures. District attorneys say that their city-funded budgets are too thin to allow them to pay prosecutors competitively. Despite the cost of living in Manhattan and Brooklyn, starting salaries for prosecutors in those boroughs is $72,000. In the Bronx it is $75,121.

And, of course, the trend has coincided with the pandemic, which has caused record numbers of voluntary resignations across all industries.

District attorneys say their employees are struggling. Ms. Clark said her office’s lawyers, inundated with paperwork, could make $30,000 more doing similar tasks for law firms, which might also let them work from home. “Why not do that?” she said.

State lawmakers rewrote the discovery law in 2019 after defense attorneys said that prosecutors were withholding key evidence. The previous law required them to turn over certain evidence only after defense attorneys had requested it in writing.

Because defendants — a disproportionate number of whom are people of color — were not privy to the full scope of the evidence against them, they often accepted plea deals, rather than risk going to trial.

“The defense bar was basically completely in the dark about what the case was even about,” said John P. Buza, a former prosecutor at the Manhattan district attorney’s office who now practices defense law as a partner at Konta, Georges & Buza, P.C.

Public defenders argued that without pressure on prosecutors to turn over exculpatory facts, their clients were perpetually at risk of wrongful conviction.

The discovery law changed that. Prosecutors are now obligated to turn over 21 kinds of material, including all electronically created or stored information relevant to a case.

Prosecutors now must hustle to obtain reams of paperwork — much of it produced by the New York Police Department — and submit it to defense attorneys or risk seeing a case tossed out. Prosecutors often work as many as 100 cases simultaneously, and a large percentage of their cases now generate significant paperwork.

Ms. Clark said that the workload had led to immense pressure on her assistants, who “feel that their cases are going to get dismissed or that I’m going to fire them.”

“When they have all this pressure on them, they’d rather go somewhere else where their quality of life is better,” she said. “They don’t have to work nights, weekends, holidays and do all this discovery.”

Caitlin Nolan, an 11-year veteran of the Manhattan district attorney’s office, said in an interview Friday that she started looking for a new job last spring, amid the challenges of working on a low salary, the everyday difficulties of the pandemic and frustration with the new laws. She left the office in January.

“It was difficult to comply with because there was so much we were expected to produce,” she said, adding that having to provide information about witnesses — who would express concern to her about defendants knowing their identities ahead of a trial — was particularly nerve-racking.

In recent testimony submitted to the New York City Council, the Manhattan district attorney, Alvin Bragg, illustrated the burden. He reported that before 2020, his office used about 32 terabytes of data storage. Today, it uses 320 terabytes, a 900 percent increase over two years.

Tina Luongo, the attorney in charge of the criminal defense practice at the Legal Aid Society, said that she agreed that prosecutors — and public defenders — needed more money for competitive salaries, particularly in light of the discovery laws.

“High workloads, even high workloads for public defenders, diminish morale. I’m not going to deny that,” she said, adding that she expected the state to provide local prosecutors with tens of millions of dollars for staffing in its coming budget.

But, she said, “It cannot be the case and it must not be the case that the way you solve a workload problem is to diminish the rights of somebody accused of a crime.”

Mr. Buza said that his former colleagues are not saying that the principles underlying the new laws are unjust or misguided, but are simply overwhelmed by the way the job overall has changed, with the need to chase down documents for which they are legally responsible — even if they might not be aware such materials exist.

“People go into the job because they have an idea as to what it means to be a prosecutor and go into court and try cases, and they end up just basically uploading discovery,” he said.

Last month, Gov. Kathy Hochul proposed changes to the discovery law that would prevent a judge from dismissing a case if a prosecutor was in “substantial compliance” with discovery obligations. Ms. Luongo said that various counterproposals were under negotiation.

Majority of arrestees by NYPD

artappraiser — Mon, 04 Apr 2022 08:35:38 +0000

In reply to [CRIME News] Video of beating of 67-yr. old Asian women in Yonkers

Majority of arrestees by NYPD's new anti-gun unit have criminal history: Adams https://t.co/XTNbFf6Ez9 pic.twitter.com/bSTsSJWuqp
— New York Post (@nypost) April 3, 2022

but lefties aren't pleased (don't like cops and media targeting people with a criminal history!)

Here’s the twisted irony. This unit isn’t new. It’s the same gun unit that was disbanded for rampant violent abuse, they just renamed it to hide that history. Now they get to target and abuse ppl while media uses their criminal history to vilify them. Copaganda at work https://t.co/pAoUlDasdK
— Olayemi Olurin (@msolurin) April 3, 2022

UPDATE: Police now say six

artappraiser — Mon, 04 Apr 2022 08:28:08 +0000

In reply to BREAKING: Police say six

UPDATE: Police now say six people were killed and at least 15 were wounded in a mass shooting in downtown Sacramento last night. It was the second mass shooting in the city in a little over a month. No suspects are in custody yet. #caleg https://t.co/bbdSnyZhZY
— Shannon Watts (@shannonrwatts) April 3, 2022

While California has strong gun laws compared to the rest of the US, it’s surrounded by states with weaker gun laws and is the epicenter of our nation’s ghost guns crisis.

On average, 3,000+ people die by gun violence in California and 6,800+ are wounded. https://t.co/4IMKfiWkwd
— Shannon Watts (@shannonrwatts) April 3, 2022

one big bust doesn't mean the

artappraiser — Mon, 04 Apr 2022 08:21:04 +0000

In reply to [CRIME News] Video of beating of 67-yr. old Asian women in Yonkers

one big bust doesn't mean the shoplifting mob thing is over - keep it up and all the luxury retailers will leave Chicago -

Another one.

A shoplifting mob raided the Gucci store on Michigan Avenue this afternoon, one day after the nearby Burberry store lost an estimated $35,000 in a similar crime.https://t.co/gskugh1n7o
— CWBChicago (@CWBChicago) April 2, 2022

I think they already gave up on San Francisco?

Glorifying the culture of

artappraiser — Mon, 04 Apr 2022 08:11:44 +0000

In reply to [CRIME News] Video of beating of 67-yr. old Asian women in Yonkers

Glorifying the culture of rapper shot dead, very gruesomely, as in SICKO

DMV rapper #Goonew shot and killed just 5 months after getting out of prison. RIP pic.twitter.com/XcjbKvuDam
— No Jumper (@nojumper) March 19, 2022

Imagine walking into work and it’s a deceased body on display. They didn’t warn us they didn’t tell us they didn’t even know. When i say I’ve officially been traumatized this year i mean it.
— MELLONZ (@mellonellen96) April 3, 2022

REALLY, it really happened -

#Goonew standing up at his funeral held at #Bliss #UrbanNewsUncutt pic.twitter.com/d8NYtvfyKO
— UrbanNewsUncutt (@UrbanNewsUncutt) April 4, 2022

Crazy Hood Shit #Goonew #GoonewParty Got Him Standing Up pic.twitter.com/OzXqWyzKxL
— Hawk Slaughter (@KVGMG) April 3, 2022

Bro passed away over 2 Weeks ago and they really have his corpse pinned against a wall standing up in the club He aint ask for that! #goonew #goonew64 #rip pic.twitter.com/TOwN54fQz5
— moses (@mosestheredd) April 4, 2022

even tho "Moses" claims above that he didn't aks for that, makes sense to me, as when he was living, looks like he loved to glorify the live-fast-and-dangerously-and-die-young culture, including dissing authorities -

Mane rip #goonew wtf I’m krying rn pic.twitter.com/Yjz9jwXEIC
— TAK3N (@Tak3nbelow) March 19, 2022

Old video #Goonew and #MoneyReek fake pressing out McDonald's Security around Forest Creek pic.twitter.com/Wb9Y403SBU
— YOUTUBE - DMV HOODZ AND NEWZ © (@DMVHOODZNDNEWZ) August 11, 2018

belongs here (even tho I also

artappraiser — Mon, 04 Apr 2022 01:31:01 +0000

In reply to I've noticed something about

belongs here (even tho I also posted it the other day on my blue cities and policing blog thread:)

"A large plurality of New Yorkers believe that individuals charged with a violent crime should be held in jail until their trial," @michael_hendrix and I detail un/surprising results of @ManhattanInst's recent poll with @EchelonInsights in @CityJournal: https://t.co/Sui8j22yne
— Hannah E. Meyers (@HannahElka) March 31, 2022

edit to add the related "spin" which everyone knows is basically a lie because they know a lot of the worst crimes lately are by repeat offenders back on the streets:

This is really bad talk from our comptroller. Bail reform eliminated cash bail for most criminal offenses. So of course avg cost for remaining bail goes up! I presume Brad Lander knows this. So either he's deceitful or shockingly stupid. I don't know which is worse. https://t.co/DI3OjXEw0s
— Peter Moskos (@PeterMoskos) March 28, 2022

THIS. IS. INSANITY.

artappraiser — Mon, 04 Apr 2022 01:28:21 +0000

In reply to I've noticed something about

THIS. IS. INSANITY.

Jun '17: Drags a cop behind a stolen car, paralyzing him

Jan '19: Sentenced to just 16 MONTHS

May '21: High-speed chase in stolen car...WHILE ON PAROLE...RELEASED AGAIN

Feb '22: ANOTHER stolen car chase!

Mar '22: Arrested & RELEASED AGAIN! pic.twitter.com/hD5RkeyGRS
— NYC PBA (@NYCPBA) March 30, 2022

This is a picture of Det. Dalsh Veve at the funeral for Det. Wilbert Mora. Confined to a wheelchair, he still shows up. The perpetrator who put Veve in the wheelchair keeps committing the same crimes and doesn’t seem to be confined to anyplace. What is wrong with this system? pic.twitter.com/O7JLC7cBjn
— Deputy Commissioner John Miller (@NYPDDCPI) March 31, 2022

I've noticed something about

artappraiser — Mon, 04 Apr 2022 00:19:09 +0000

In reply to [CRIME News] Video of beating of 67-yr. old Asian women in Yonkers

I've noticed something about threads from progressive DAs insisting crime isn't a problem. The go on-and-on. Makes me want to slowly back away.
Anyway, long story short, everything is fine. Fear of crime is media hype / right-wing disinformation and don't believe your lying eyes. pic.twitter.com/28YGxmXUkX
— Peter Moskos (@PeterMoskos) April 2, 2022

In the last 24 hours we’ve

artappraiser — Sun, 03 Apr 2022 23:36:28 +0000

In reply to [CRIME News] Video of beating of 67-yr. old Asian women in Yonkers

In the last 24 hours we’ve endured 3 mass shootings (I’m aware of) in: Norfolk, Dallas, Sacramento. This country needs a hell of a lot more than these politicians’ empty thoughts + prayers, FYI #sacramentoshooting #norfolkmallshooting #dallasshooting
— TheWellApothecary (@thewellapoth) April 3, 2022

ONE DEAD, 2 HURT IN A SHOOTING INSIDE MACARTHUR MALL — Norfolk Police Chief says he believes it started over money between two relatives.

Around 6:25 pm, police got the call about the shooting.

Chief Boone says a MAN died and two women are hurt. #13newsnow pic.twitter.com/IQb5bOUtUw
— Eugene Daniel 13News Now (@eugenedanielTV) April 3, 2022

These two are identified as “persons of interest” by Norfolk cops in yesterday’s triple shooting at MacArthur Center. Bam masks. Let’s see faces again. #masks pic.twitter.com/oABIuCqFpa
— kerry dougherty (@kerrydougherty) April 3, 2022

Chile B. Simone was at the mall when they were shooting. She ain’t coming back to Norfolk. Y’all don’t know how to act pic.twitter.com/MRMVlskBB3
— (@SanaaArie) April 3, 2022

There were two mass shootings

artappraiser — Sun, 03 Apr 2022 23:32:30 +0000

In reply to [CRIME News] Video of beating of 67-yr. old Asian women in Yonkers

There were two mass shootings last night: one in Sacramento and one in Dallas. As people begin to socialize again, they’re being slaughtered in the streets - in cities, in college communities, and at concerts. Our lawmakers have the power to stop this.

ACT: Text READY to 644-33 pic.twitter.com/hjb9kxaTgo
— Shannon Watts (@shannonrwatts) April 3, 2022

10 shot, 1 fatally, at concert in #Dallas: Police - ABC News - https://t.co/DywhNMMsIV via @ABC #DallasShooting
— Janice Dash (@Trazlersgal) April 3, 2022

Same with Dallas shooting at a rap concert pic.twitter.com/fcryZUEuyY
— Stevie Nix (@StevieN18725781) April 3, 2022