NYPD Blames Sharp Rise in Crime on New Bail Law

New York – Lawmakers in Albany are responsible for a sharp rise in crime statistics since their bail reform law has set hundreds of criminals back into the street, the NYPD’s chief said on Friday.

Commissioner Dermot Shea said at a press conference that many crime categories have soared since Jan. 1, when the new law taking away a judge’s discretion to hold repeat and possibly violent offenders went into effect.

“In the first three weeks of this year, we’re seeing significant spikes in crime. So either we forgot how to police New York City, or there’s a correlation,” Shea told reporters. “If you let out individuals that commit a lot of crime, that’s precision policing in reverse and we’re seeing the effects in a very quick time, and that is why we’re so concerned.”

As of Friday, robberies are up 33 percent in the city, car theft is up 61 percent and burglaries are up 18 percent compared to the same time period last year. This equal 233 more robberies in the first three weeks of the year compared to 2019, 159 more car thefts and 125 more burglaries.

“People say it just took effect you can’t have consequences already. Take a look at the CompStat,” Shea said, referring to the police system that tallies crime scores. “We’re seeing it immediately at the same time that you have [jail] populations dropping significantly. Now don’t tell me there’s not a correlation to that.”
But the worst is yet to come, Shea warned. The second component of the law did not fully factor in yet. This would allow criminals to gain access to all of prosecutors’ evidence, plus contact information of witnesses and victims, within 15 days of an arrest.

“Discovery,” Shea said, referring to the evidence part of a trial, “is going to change how crimes are prosecuted in New York.”