With just days remaining in the legislative session, the state Capitol is full of advocates and lobbyists pushing to get their priorities across the finish line.
Few seem more frustrated than those pushing for state prison reform in the wake of the murder of Robert Brooks at Marcy Correctional Facility in December and made more acute by the death of Messiah Nantwi at Mid-State Correctional Facility during the correction officer strike in March.
On the state Capitol’s Senate Staircase Wednesday, some of those advocates aired their frustration that a concrete package of legislation in response to Brooks’ death, long sought by Democratic lawmakers in Albany, has yet to officially materialize. The Black, Puerto Rican Hispanic and Asian Legislative Caucus is expected unveil their package of more than twenty preferred pieces of legislation as soon as Friday morning.
“You promised us a Robert Brooks package, you promised us some restorative justice,” said John Draper, civil rights union organizer for VOCAL-NY. “When does that start? When do you start recognizing us as whole human beings?”
Draper went on to suggest if a package doesn’t come together, advocates should actively campaign against current lawmakers who he argued have not delivered on the group of reform legislation they have indicated is forthcoming since before the beginning of the legislative session.
State Sen. Julia Salazar is one of those lawmakers, but she is a driving force behind reform efforts and said that progress is still within in reach this session, especially when it comes to legislation that deals with transparency and oversight.
“I relate to that frustration,” she said of activist's complaints. “I have felt since the very beginning of session that we should act swiftly to address these issues. We really have a responsibility. It is a crisis when people are being murdered in our prison system.”
Assemblymember Brian Cunningham is urging activists to wait and see what the coming days have in store, pointing out that Albany is not a place where things often move swiftly — until the bitter end.
“There are two more weeks in Albany session, in two weeks a lot can get done, I think we’ve seen historically that a lot of the bills that get passed get passed in the last two weeks,” he said.
The package is expected to prioritize legislation to increase oversight in state prisons, along with initiatives like parole and sentencing reforms. Cunningham said the reforms must continue a process the state started with previous criminal justice reforms like changes to bail laws, now addressing what takes place once someone is convicted, and beyond.
“When someone goes inside that process of rehabilitation and beginning the next steps of their lives begin, and when that person returns home, we want to make sure they come back home to housing and opportunity so they never have to return to crime again,” he said.
It comes as Deputy Senate Majority Leader Mike Gianaris earlier this week suggested that time may ultimately be a roadblock to meaningful reforms, given that the Senate only has a little over one week remaining. The Assembly added an extra three days due to the late state budget.
“It’s a sticky wicket as we like to say, and with a week and a half left we have our work cut out for us on that,” he said Monday.
Republicans, like state Sen. Mark Walczyk have criticized the bills that have been proposed so far, arguing the reforms do little to address the safety concerns highlighted by staff during the three-week illegal correction officer strike.
“They want screening to make sure drugs aren’t getting into the facilities, they want the ability to govern within the facilities to keep the inmates safe from each other,” he said. “There needs to be consequences for doing serious crimes in New York state, and the fact that they’re putting forth measures that would release violent convicted felons back on the street faster while their families may still be grieving loss is atrocious to me.”
The state has begun to roll out new technology to screen for contraband.
Advocates are specifically pushing for The Second Look Act, Earned Time Act and Marvin Mayfield Act, and have pushed back against claims that the bills are a threat to public safety, recently sending a letter to legislative leaders signed by ten victim services and survivor justice organizations arguing the reforms will help divert funds from incarceration toward victim support services.
Despite the impending announcement of a package backed by the caucus, that’s a whole different ballgame than when the Senate or Assembly introduce a package of legislation that is guaranteed to be headed for a floor vote.
Legislative leaders often make clear that they won’t bring legislation to the floor that they don’t have the votes to pass, so as conversations continue behind the scenes, it remains unclear which bills if any will ultimately pass that test.
With that, advocates remain concerned this conversation could transcend this legislative session.
“We can’t wait until next year,” Draper said. “Next year there will be another excuse why we can’t get it done, people are probably going to forget about Robert Brooks by then."