Gov. Kathy Hochul and other opposers of the bill said it would have strained the state’s court system
ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — New York Gov. Kathy Hochul vetoed a
In 2018, New York’s highest court affirmed that people who plead guilty cannot challenge their convictions unless they have DNA evidence to support their innocence. That requirement makes it very difficult for defendants to get their cases heard before a judge, even if they have powerful evidence that is not DNA-based.
Over the past three decades, the proportion of criminal cases that make it to trial in New York has steadily declined, according to a report by the New York State Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. About 99% of misdemeanor charges and 94% of felony charges in the state are resolved by guilty pleas.
“In my work, I know there there are a lot of circumstances where people plead guilty to crimes because they are advised or misadvised by their attorneys at the time,” said Donna Aldea, a lawyer at law firm Barket Epstein Kearon Aldea & LoTurco. “Sometimes they’re afraid that if they go to trial, they’ll face much worse consequences, even if they didn’t commit the crime.”
She said the state’s criminal justice system right now is framed in a way that makes it impossible for people to challenge their guilty pleas years later when new evidence emerges, or when they’re in a better financial position to challenge their convictions.
Under the bill, those challenging their convictions would be provided court-appointed pro bono representation if they can’t afford an attorney. They’d also be able to request retesting of physical evidence, as well as access to both the defense and prosecutor’s discovery files related to their case.
State Senator Zellnor Myrie, a New York City Democrat who sponsored the bill, said he is considering reintroducing the bill in the next legislative session to give innocent people a “fair chance to reverse a terrible wrong.”
Nick Encalada-Malinowski, the civil rights campaign director for VOCAL-NY, a grassroots organization, said the bill would have removed various barriers for folks who got their wrongful conviction cases dismissed on procedural or technical grounds.
The bill, he said, would have given them a chance to get their cases heard on the merits.
“The problem of wrongful convictions in New York requires a statewide solution,” said Nick Encalada-Malinowski, the civil rights campaign director for VOCAL-NY, a grassroots organization. “We’re trying to have a system where people have an ability no matter where they are, if they’re wrongfully convicted, to get back in courts and argue their cases.”
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