NCJ Number
80514
Date Published
1981
Length
50 pages
Annotation
This report from a special committee of the New York State Bar Association comments on all but 9 or the 32 legislative proposals contained in the 'Mayor's Survey of the Criminal Justice System' which outlined revisions to the criminal codes and criminal procedure laws for New York City.
Abstract
An introductory statement urges the legislature to consider all sentencing proposals with a view towards enacting a unitary, comprehensive, and appropriate sentencing structure and emphasizes that chronic underfunding is the most serious cause of breakdown in the criminal justice system. The text of each proposal is presented, followed by the committee's opinion and a discussion of the issues involved. Proposed amendments to criminal procedure law support preventive detention, eliminate the sequestration of juries, and permit witnesses to testify regarding previous selection of a defendant's photograph. Additional judicial positions are proposed for the court of claims, the criminal court, and the family court. Amendments to the penal law would reclassify misdemeanors, mandate consecutive sentences in certain circumstances, and abolish conditional release. In the area of criminal procedure, the mayor's report suggests eliminating the requirement for presentence reports when parties agree on the sentence and changing the rules governing peremptory challenges. Other recommendations cover application of bail to fines and restitution, protective orders, and appeals, as well as the prosecutor's authority to appeal unduly lenient sentences and setting of low bail. Revisions affecting the family court include expanding its authority to fingerprint juveniles charged with felonies and modifying the court's discretion in releasing a placed juvenile. The mayor's report also favored extending the period a defendant charged with a felony can be incarcerated without a hearing and establishing a retail theft section to deal with shoplifiting in the penal law. Reasons why the committee would not comment on nine of the mayor's proposals are presented.