“Rivera said he was honored to have worked with Neighborhood Defender Services, Center for Community Alternatives, The Bronx Defenders, and the New York Civil Liberties Union in drafting the new bill, based on powerful testimony he heard at the joint legislative hearing held in May on the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on minority communities. “This…
“During testimony in Albany in November, Emma Ketteringham, managing attorney of Bronx Defenders’ Family Defense Practice said the problems include too few judges and a lack of evening and weekend courtroom hours. “As a result, families are separated needlessly and kept separated for longer than necessary,” she told lawmakers. Pandemic-related court closures have exacerbated those delays for the foreseeable…
“According to the groups – The Legal Aid Society, Brooklyn Defender Services and The Bronx Defenders – the inmates are rallying against “egregious conditions” and inaction by ICE to prevent the spread of COVID-19. “Among reports of egregious conditions, we have heard that ICE is not responding to medical sick calls and that there are…
New York City Council Committee on Justice System Oversight Hearing on Cost of Justice September 27, 2018 Testimony of The Bronx Defenders By Dawit Getachew Chairman Lancman and members of the Committee, my name is Dawit Getachew, and I am a criminal defense attorney and Associate Special Counsel at The Bronx Defenders. I am grateful…
New York City Council Committee on Criminal Justice, Committee on Justice System & Committee on Women Joint Oversight Hearing on Sexual Abuse and Harassment in City Jails September 6, 2018 Testimony of The Bronx Defenders By Deborah Lolai Good morning, Chair Lancman, Chair Powers, Chair Rosenthal and committee members. My name is Deborah Lolai and…
NEW YORK, N.Y. — The Bronx Defenders, The Center for Constitutional Rights, The NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund Inc., and The New York Civil Liberties Union filed an amicus brief in the New York State Court of Appeals in The People v. Nicholas Hill (APL-2017-00182). In the case, a split First Department panel ruled…
On December 4, 2017, Alice Fontier, Managing Director of The Bronx Defenders’ Criminal Defense Practice presented written and oral testimony before the New York City Council Committee on Fire and Criminal Justice Services at the Hearing on Progress in Closing Rikers Island. In her testimony, Alice highlighted the Administration’s misguided focus on technocratic fixes to…
On October 24, 2017, Runa Rajagopal, Managing Director of The Bronx Defenders’ Civil Action Practice, presented written and oral testimony before the New York City Council Committee on Public Housing jointly with the Committee on Aging Oversight Hearing regarding the permanent addition of family members to a New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) household and…
“The lies officers tell to justify the unlawful stops, searches and questioning are a natural byproduct of this policing strategy. Once we see the root of the problem, the answer becomes obvious: The NYPD leadership needs to stop holding on to the myth that ‘broken windows’ policing is necessary to keep New York City safe…
On April 24, 2017, Runa Rajagopal, director of The Bronx Defenders’ Civil Action Practice, presented written and oral testimony before the New York City Council Committees on Public Housing and Oversight and Investigations regarding a new report by the New York City Department of Investigation’s (DOI) on the New York City Housing Authority’s (NYCHA) policy…
For the past several years, police departments across America have been using a nifty new piece of technology to trace the location of suspects. IMSI-catchers—commonly known as “StingRays” after the most popular brand name—are small boxes that gather all cell signals in a given area by mimicking a cell phone tower. And they’ve grown increasingly…
The Courts & Legal Services Committee and the Fire & Criminal Justice Services Committee recently held a joint hearing, ‘Examining the New York Bail System and the Need for Reform.’ The hearing, chaired by Council Member Rory Lancman and Council Member Elizabeth Crowley, looked at how to reform our dysfunctional bail system. “Our bail system…
NEW YORK CITY (TIP): The Courts & Legal Services Committee and the Fire & Criminal Justice Services Committee recently held a joint hearing, ‘Examining the New York Bail System and the Need for Reform.’ The hearing, chaired by Council Member Lancman and Council Member Elizabeth Crowley, looked at how to reform our dysfunctional bail system….
Earlier this week, Justine Olderman, Managing Director of the Criminal Defense Practice, Robyn Mar, Director of Early Advocacy, and Noelle Turtur, Project Associate, submitted testimony on behalf of The Bronx Defenders before the New York City Council Committees on Courts and Legal Services and Fire and Criminal Justice on the dire need for reform of the New York…
Managing Director of the Criminal Defense Practice Justine Olderman presented oral testimony before the New York City Council Committee on Courts and Legal Services earlier this month, on May 12. While commending the efforts that the Mayor and City Council have made thus far to address the over-incarceration of the mentally ill, Justine’s testimony called attention…
New York City is one step closer to having a new Office of Civil Justice. On Tuesday, the City Council’s Committee on Courts and Legal Services unanimously passed a bill that would create the office, to be tasked with assessing, coordinating, and helping reform the civil legal services available to low-income New Yorkers. Among the…
The Bronx Defenders Managing Director of the Civil Action Practice Kate Rubin presented written and oral testimony to the New York City Council Committee on Courts and Legal Services yesterday, April 15, in support of Intro 736, a local law to establish the Office of Civil Justice. The Bronx Defenders supports Intro 736 because an…
Bronx Defenders Managing Director of the Civil Action Practice Kate Rubin, together with Fundamental Fairness Project Director Scott Levy, submitted written comments on behalf of The Bronx Defenders to New York City Council’s Committee on Public Safety on March 3, 2015, discussing key issues to consider in community policing. The testimony describes two critical lenses through which…
Serial, the popular podcast that ends this week, is about a real-life teenage murder mystery. Reporter Sarah Koenig explores lingering doubts about the case of Adnan Syed, who, as a high-school senior, was convicted of the murder of his ex-girlfriend Hae Min Lee. The prosecutors in the case collected a raft of evidence from the…
In the last two weeks, grand juries failed to indict the white police officers who killed Michael Brown and Eric Garner. These decisions have exposed deep-seated issues of race, class, and power that still pervade our society. We should keep protesting injustice where we see it, as thousands have done across the country. At the…
Yesterday The Bronx Defenders’ Legal Director of the Civil Action Practice, Molly Kovel, presented written and oral testimony before the New York City Council Committee on Civil Rights regarding The Bronx Defenders’ enthusiastic support for the proposed Fair Chance Act, which would protect the thousands of people with criminal records in New York City against some of the…
“Every day, advocates at our office witness firsthand how the promise of due process held out by the 5th Amendment is unrealized by our non-citizen clients solely because of immigration status. Whenever ICE has lodged a detainer against a non-citizen client and the client’s criminal case carries potential immigration consequences, that client is unable to…
Written Comments of The Bronx Defenders New York City Council Joint Meeting of the Committee on Fire and Criminal Justice Services and the Committee on Juvenile Justice Good afternoon. My name is Dave Casellas, and I work as a client coordinator at The Bronx Defenders. In this role, I help Bronx Defenders clients and their families…
NEW YORK — The New York City Police Department outlined a new tactical training program on Monday as the administration of Mayor Bill de Blasio continues its efforts to mend the fractured relationship between the nation’s largest police force and the city’s minority communities. Speaking before the New York City Council Monday morning, police Commissioner…
The Bronx Defenders’ Written Comments for the New York City Council Committee on Public Safety Oversight: The Police Department’s Plan to Enhance Officer Trainings September 8, 2014 The Bronx Defenders is a holistic public defender located in the South Bronx. Each year we represent over 30,000 people arrested in Bronx County. Nearly all of our…