Senate Deputy Leader Gianaris Announces Senate Passes His Next Criminal Justice Reform Bill, Demanding Transparent Information About How Defendants Are Treated, On The Heels Of Major Reforms Earlier This Year

ALBANY, N.Y. – Senate Deputy Leader Michael Gianaris announced the Senate passed his legislation creating new requirements for the Chief Administrator of the New York State Courts to issue annual reports about defendants pre-trial experiences. This comes on the heels of major reforms to bail, discovery, and speedy trial laws enacted in April. The new reporting requirements will demonstrate the efficacy of the new criminal justice reforms. 

“The drive to deliver real justice in our legal system made tremendous strides earlier this year but the fight for progress is far from over,” said Senate Deputy Leader Michael Gianaris. “I was honored to lead the efforts to eliminate cash bail and work with my colleagues on other significant reforms. While our efforts continue, we need to demonstrate those efforts are achieving their intended goals. By requiring the courts to report data, we will better inform future policy decisions and give the public an understanding of the gravity of the changes we made this year.”   

Senator Gianaris’ bill creates data reporting requirements for the total number of cases in the system, individuals released versus remanded or subjected to electronic monitoring and for how long, the types of disposition of cases, the length of time it takes for cases to reach disposition, the average fines imposed for certain cases, and also demographic information for defendants.