FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 13, 2020
Contact: Reynolds Graves | rgraves@skdknick.com |
New Yorkers United for Justice Responds to Latest Attempt by Nassau County Officials to Mislead Public on Bail Reform
Despite Being Called Out Publicly for Falsifying Information Around Pretrial Reform, Nassau County’s Police Commissioner Doubles Down with More Inaccuracies on Pretrial Reforms; Local Police Union Official Puts Ideology Before Facts and Abuses Public Trust
New Yorkers United for Justice Chief Strategist Khalil A. Cumberbatch Reacts to Further Bad-Faith Misinformation Effort
“If Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder and the Sheriff’s Department take issue with being labeled as fearmongers, they should stop cherry-picking isolated incidents and relying on already-refuted information to make the disingenuous case that criminal justice reforms are bad for public safety – when the facts say otherwise. Commissioner Ryder, who has been admonished publicly for his deliberate attempts to mislead Long Islanders and manipulate facts around a recent murder, should know better. The question to ask is, why are Commissioner Ryder and Mr. Sullivan digging themselves into an even deeper hole with the public?
In today’s Hicksville News, Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder and Lt. Brian Sullivan, president of the Nassau County Sheriff’s Correction Officers Benevolent Association attempted to tie a multiple-offender with a serious DUI past to bail reform – even though the facts make it clear that there is no connection, and several of alleged offender’s repeated releases predated the new law. Furthermore, reacting to arrests along the timeline, judges could have held the alleged offender for parole violations, but did not. Failing to do saw has no relation to bail reform, but that is a question to be posed to the judges who chose not to pursue remand.
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About New Yorkers United for Justice (NYUJ):
New Yorkers United for Justice is a statewide coalition comprised of local and national non-profit organizations committed to supporting a movement that will bring much-needed criminal justice reform to New York State and ensure that policies promote safety and fairness. NYUJ aims for legislative urgency to fix a broken criminal justice system that punishes the poor and communities of color, tears families apart, and makes New Yorkers less safe. NYUJ believes that a system that ensures equal access to justice for anyone accused in New York State, regardless of age, race, ethnicity or social economic status, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin or religion, must be the standard.