New York City To Free 125,000 Accused Criminals, Award Them Taxpayer-Funded Housing
Defendants ensured release through removal of cash bail
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New York City is set to free at least 125,000 accused criminals from prisons, spending millions ensuring defendants are released through the removal of cash bail, providing many with taxpayer-funded housing and job training.
The new justice reform laws are aimed to ensure suspects accused of “non-violent” crimes are not jailed ahead of their trial dates.
Under the new laws, bails will remain an option for defendants accused of what is deemed as "violent crimes."
According to an analysis from John Jay College of Criminal Justice, the new laws could see over 20,000 criminals released from incarceration in New York City each year.
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In 2018, New York city released 105,000 people without bail before their criminal hearings.
But the number is said to grow to 125,000 by 2020 under the new laws.
The suspects that will be freed from prison include theses list of crimes:
- Aggravated vehicular assault
- Second-degree manslaughter
- Promoting an obscene sexual performance by a child
- Third-degree assault
- Possessing an obscene sexual performance by a child
- Failure to register as a sex offender
- Criminally negligent homicide
- Promoting a sexual performance by a child
- Making terroristic threats
- Aggravated vehicular homicide
Of those 125,000 released accused criminals, the city will also provide housing, job training, and family counseling to 10,000 each year, which would be all funded by the taxpayer.
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New York City taxpayers will fork out tens of millions of dollars each year for the new scheme, called the “Atlas” program.
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio also promised to gift released accused criminals Mets tickets and movie passes for showing up to their court dates.
Seven thousand defendants are expected to participate in the voluntary programs, but critics argue that the ban on cash bail could see dangerous criminals relased into society.
State Assemblyman Michael Reilly, a former NYPD officer, said the Atlas program is not sufficient to ensure public safety.
NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio came under fire earlier this year for promising "free" health care" to illegal aliens.
The NYC Care guaranteed health care 600,000 people without health insurance in New York.
De Blasio announced in August that a lottery for just a few spaces in new homeless shelters would be open for illegal immigrants as well.
De Blasio said in a statement, "for too long, families without access to credit have faced barriers to the affordable housing they need."
