Statement by Senator Marty Golden On Decision to Keep Cop Killer John MacKenzie Behind Bars

Yesterday Senate Republicans stood with law enforcement officials from across the state to express our outrage at the release of Shuaib Raheem, who murdered a New York City Police Officer in cold blood, and to keep the parole board from repeating the same mistake with cop killer John MacKenzie.

It’s clear our voices were heard. When John MacKenzie saw he would go before the same three people who freed Raheem last week, he elected to have his case heard instead of requesting a postponement. Fortunately, this time they did the right thing and kept this dangerous criminal behind bars where he belongs. Hopefully, this will force them to consider reversing last week’s decision to let Raheem back onto the streets.

Today’s decision is a tremendous victory for every resident of the State of New York, but it is not the end. We need to reverse the dangerous trend established by New York Democrats that focuses more on protecting dangerous criminals than on keeping our communities safe.