New York State Bail Bondsman Association Asks Speaker Mark-Viverito to Provide Balance to the Indepe

NY, NY: The New York State Bail Bondsman Association offered testimony last night at the Independent Commission on New York City Criminal Justice and Incarceration Reform Hearing on Staten Island.

The Commission was formed by NYC Council Speaker Mark-Viverito for the purpose of gathering public sentiment about closing Riker’s Island and reforming private sector bail. It is headed by former Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman.

The NYSBBA offered in person testimony regarding the future of bail in New York.

Said Michelle Esquenazi, President of the NYSBBA, "I felt it was important to let the Commission hear from those of us on the front lines of the Criminal Justice System because the "independent" Commission appears to be a bit incomplete. If you take a look at the Commissioners and at the panel at last night’s event, it was stacked with people outside law enforcement whose mission is to protect the rights of "criminals" and not victims. This type of bias against our current criminal justice system has led to reforms in states like New Jersey, which is now releasing suspected child molesters, drug dealers and illegal gun runners back into the community without supervision. Some of these suspects have been rearrested more than once in a month on suspicion of committing the same type of crime in different counties because they understand that they will be set free without bail supervision."

One of the suspects Esquenazi refers to above is Dawud Ward, a suspect in 11 separate burglary cases in New Jersey – 9 of which were committed following several arrests and releases under the state’s new "no bail" system.

To the assertion from The Vera Institute, which provides statistics to the Commission, that innocent people are being kept in jail because they can’t afford bail, Esquenazi has this to say, "The average bail bond in New York City is $1,500 which is usually paid immediately by the family of the accused. However, there are times when family members choose to leave their loved one in jail for various reasons, such as addiction. When families choose to bail their loved ones out of jail, they work with the bail agent to place certain conditions on the defendant such as enrollment in a drug treatment facility and weekly check-ins with the agent to be sure the defendant is working towards bettering him or herself which will be considered favorable by the court during trial. We call this the "circle of love" and it has been in practice for over 200 years.

"On the flip side, when the government takes control of a defendant’s liberty it’s tantamount to a modern day form of slavery. They smack a monitoring bracelet on the defendants’ ankle then requires him/her to pay between $10-$15 per day for the bracelet. That adds up to at least $5,475 over the 18 months it usually takes for a case to go to trial. That bracelet broadcasts to the world that the defendant is suspected of committing a crime. Where is the presumption of innocence there? If the defendant should tamper with the bracelet or not return to court, it is left up to the police, at the taxpayer’s expense, to go out and re-arrest that defendant, whereas, when surety bail is involved, it is up to the private sector bail agents to pay for the cost of finding the defendant and returning him/or her to court. In short, bail reform is costing defendants and the taxpayers much more money than the current surety bail system. If the Speaker wants a truly balanced and independent commission, I would suggest that she include a member of the NYSBBA on the commission."