Senate Minority Conference Along With Nassau District Attorney Donnelly Demand Changes To Discovery Law BE Included In The State Budget

The democrat’s discovery reform has forced prosecutors across the state to allow criminals to walk free.  While this is probably what democrats wanted, when they passed the bill, it is why we republicans voted against it,” said Senate Deputy Republican Leader Andrew Lanza.

Senate Minority Leader Rob Ortt, Senate Deputy Minor Leader Andrew Lanza, Senator Patricia Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly and members of the Senate Minority Conference today urged the Governor and Legislature to include substantive discovery reforms in this year’s final budget. The Senate Minority Conference highlighted the need to fix the broken criminal justice system and equip those who work in law enforcement with the tools needed to protect victims, families and communities. 

“As a prosecutor with over 32 years of experience, and as the District Attorney of one of the largest counties in the state, I’ve witnessed firsthand how 'Cashless Bail' and 'Discovery Reform’ Laws have compromised public safety. Since the implementation of these laws, we’ve seen a revolving door of justice, where criminals walk free on technicalities while victims continue to suffer. These laws have made it harder for law enforcement and prosecutors to do their jobs, jeopardizing public safety and leaving our communities vulnerable. This is not a justice system that protects the people of New York,” stated Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly.

“Our Senate Republican Conference has been sounding the alarms on the disastrous consequences of so-called discovery reform since it was implemented in 2019. And the results speak for themselves: criminal case dismissals are increasing dramatically, less cases are going to trial, and more criminals are slipping through the cracks, further eroding public safety in our communities. The reforms proposed by the Governor in her budget were at least a step in the right direction, but once again our colleagues in the Senate Majority have shown they have zero regard for public safety. It’s time to stop prioritizing criminals over crime victims,” blasted Senate Republican Leader Rob Ortt.

“Since 2019, the Legislature has had its thumb on the scales of justice in favor of criminal defendants, and it has come at the expense of victims and public safety. Cases brought forward, which arise from real harm inflicted upon victims and communities, should not be dismissed due to minor technicalities. Victims deserve better, communities deserve better, and all New Yorkers deserve better, which is why it is urgent that we fix our discovery laws,” stated Senator Patricia Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick.

Republicans' call comes on the heels of the ongoing state budget negotiations taking place between the Governor’s office and Senate and Assembly majorities. In the Senate and Assembly One House Budgets that were passed last week, they omitted language that would’ve modified New York State’s discovery laws as proposed in the Governor’s Executive Budget.  It was recently reported that New York City’s criminal courts have seen a huge uptick of 455 percent (an estimated 50,000 cases) in forced dismissals due to the 2019 discovery changes on the books today.