After passing his police transparency legislation and overriding a mayoral veto last month, New York City Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams discussed the need for robust efforts to address the role of the NYPD in wrongful convictions during a hearing held today by the City Council’s Committee on Public Safety. The committee is chaired by Council Member Yusef Salaam, a member of the group once called the‘Central Park Five,’ who was exonerated long after his own wrongful conviction. Among his recommendations, he discussed the importance of NYPD effectively implementing the How Many Stops Act, which requires greater transparency of police-civilian encounters.
The Public Advocate argued that with DNA evidence, the rate of vacated wrongful convictions will increase, noting that “In June of last year, District Attorney Alvin Bragg vacated 316 convictions involving discredited NYPD officers. These convictions occurred between 1996 and 2017, and of those 316, 57 of the convictions resulted in incarceration. This, of course, did not cover everyone wrongfully convicted in our city as a result of abusive, corrupt, or discriminatory policing—one of those people is in this room, serving as chair of this committee.”
“Wrongful convictions harm our city financially as well—for example, Louis N. Scarcella, a former NYPD detective who has been accused of framing dozens of people for murder, has cost taxpayers $110 million in settlements alone," said the Public Advocate. "Derrick Hamilton, who spent more than 20 years in prison as a result of Scarcella’s misconduct and persuaded prosecutors to throw out his own conviction, was awarded $7 million by the city and has since become an activist working to free other innocent people. This is money that could go to schools, housing, and social services” while “Legal services providers called on the administration for $195 million in increased funding for FY24.”
Public Advocate Williams pushed to establish enhanced oversight power through the CCRB, arguing the board needs the power to “impose discipline on officers who engage in abuse, corruption, discrimination, or misconduct. Regardless of whether police truly believe a suspect is guilty, these safeguards and standards must be followed in any investigation.” He lastly argued that the governor must sign the Wrongful Convictions Act, because “Wrongfully convicted people who plead guilty often have no recourse for justice, and this law would create a path for them.”
The Public Advocate’s full statement to the committee is below. Read more about the How Many Stops Act here.
STATEMENT OF PUBLIC ADVOCATE JUMAANE D. WILLIAMS
TO THE NEW YORK CITY COUNCIL COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SAFETY FEBRUARY 26, 2024
Good morning,
Mr. Chair, I just wanted to point out this is pretty momentous, I know you alluded to it in your statement, but to have you, Yusef Salaam, formerly of the Central Park Five, now Exonerated Five, to be chairing a hearing of Council’s Committee on Public Safety on wrongful convictions, is simply amazing. I just want to make sure we get that on the record. From a person of faith to another person of faith, Allahu Akbar, simply, God is great. I want to make sure I put that on the record.
As mentioned, I am the Public Advocate of the City of New York. My name is Jumaane D. Williams, thank you Chair Salaam and the Committee on Public Safety for holding this important hearing, and the NYPD for being here.
In June of last year, District Attorney Alvin Bragg, who by the way is District Attorney of a county that is much safer than Maricopa County in Phoenix, AZ, vacated 316 convictions involving discredited NYPD officers. These convictions occurred between 1996 and 2017, and of those 316, 57 of the convictions resulted in incarceration. This, of course, did not cover everyone wrongfully convicted in our city as a result of abusive, corrupt, or discriminatory policing—one of those people is in this room, serving as chair of this committee. I would also like to acknowledge Steven Lopez, the sixth person wrongfully arrested and incarcerated for the 1989 attack on a jogger in Central Park, who was exonerated in 2022.
There are many ways that police investigative procedures can result in wrongful convictions, including coercive interrogation techniques that result in false confessions, lying on the stand in court, failing to turn over exculpatory evidence, working with unreliable informants, and displaying outright prejudice. New York City, and the United States, unfortunately, has a long history of police misconduct leading to wrongful convictions, the full scope of which we are only just beginning to see with the advent of DNA analysis leading to an increase in exonerations.
Wrongful convictions harm entire communities. Incarceration tears people from their loved ones, traumatizing not only them but their friends and families, who may have depended on that person emotionally and financially. And not to mention, leaving the person who is actually guilty is still out. When a person is released from prison or jail, or even if they were not sentenced to any period of incarceration, their criminal record follows them and affects their ability to pursue employment or education, and can affect even where they can live. Wrongful convictions harm our city financially as well—for example, Louis N. Scarcella, a former NYPD detective who has been accused of framing dozens of people for murder, has cost taxpayers $110 million in settlements alone. Derrick Hamilton, who spent more than 20 years in prison as a result of Scarcella’s misconduct and persuaded prosecutors to throw out his own conviction, was awarded $7 million by the city and has since become an activist working to free other innocent people. This is money that could go to schools, housing, and social services.
This all underscores the need for police transparency and accountability. At the end of last year, this Council passed Intro 586, part of the How Many Stops Act, which requires reporting on low Level 1 and 2 investigative encounters. My hope is that Mayor Adams and the NYPD will implement this new law,I’m looking forward to conversations about how to implement it. Further, all interrogations should be recorded in accordance with state law. And I believe we have to ask that CCRB be given some additional power to impose discipline on officers who engage in abuse, corruption, discrimination, or misconduct. Regardless of whether police truly believe a suspect is guilty, these safeguards and standards must be followed in any investigation. What we have found is just allowing, often, the commissioner to be the sole person responsible for discipline makes it more difficult to there to be accountability, when it comes to discipline.
We also must robustly invest in public defense. Legal services providers called on the administration for $195 million in increased funding for FY24. The city must fulfill their contracts on time, or our entire legal system will suffer. I lastly ask Governor Hochul to sign the Wrongful Convictions Act into law. This legislation would provide individuals convicted of crimes with the opportunity for meaningful review to ensure redress for wrongful convictions, including in cases where the individual has pleaded guilty. Wrongfully convicted people who plead guilty often have no recourse for justice, and this law would create a path for them.
Wrongful convictions are a scourge on our legal system, particularly for a community who already feels the burden for overuse of incarceral resources. . I remind you of the words of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.: “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” I’m looking forward to the discussion, and thank you
Thank you.
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