District attorneys deserve more resources to serve New Yorkers

In the past two years, New York City has focused on criminal justice like never before. We have greatly expanded our police force and invested in enhanced training and new technology. We have sought to address the violence on Rikers Island and called for the creation of a citywide bail fund. We have proposed and passed laws that fundamentally change the way police officers interact with the public and the methods by which agencies coordinate around areas of high crime. And in the coming months, we will create new offices that address gun violence, provide victims’ services and offer transitional support.

Yet all of this progress will mean nothing if we fail to support the anchor of New York City’s criminal justice system: the district attorneys.

This year, the Brooklyn, Bronx, Manhattan, Queens, and Staten Island district attorneys asked for a funding increase of a combined $21 million in the city’s budget to continue their stellar work. The DA’s offices proposed conviction and public integrity units; planned to strengthen elder abuse, sex abuse, domestic violence, and anti-trafficking units and programs; and asked for funds that would provide necessary technological upgrades – like allowing the new Richmond County district attorney to track cases on something other than an Excel spreadsheet. In his executive budget released on April 26, Mayor Bill de Blasio valued these requests at $0.

Over half of the requested $21 million comes from the historically underfunded and forgotten boroughs of Staten Island and the Bronx. As chairwoman of the Council’s Public Safety Committee, I was thrilled to see the enthusiasm for safety, integrity and community enrichment the new Richmond County and Bronx DAs presented at our preliminary budget hearing. Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark planned to use part of her proposed $11 million increase to create a Rikers Island Prosecution Unit to handle all cases of violence that occur on the island. Richmond County District Attorney Michael McMahon hoped to use part of his $3 million to repair the community’s fractured relationship with his office. Given the failure of McMahon’s predecessor Dan Donovan to indict the officer involved in Eric Garner’s death and the U.S. Department of Justice’s scathing report of the violence on Rikers, it is frankly shocking the de Blasio administration would turn a blind eye to these budget requests.

I am proud of the work my Council colleagues and I have done to bring necessary reform to our criminal justice system and am excited for the work to be done in the year ahead. The additional 1,300 police officers the Council fought for in last year’s budget will be for naught if our district attorneys lack the resources to prosecute.

In the courtroom, the district attorneys represent everyday New Yorkers. The people, and the district attorneys, deserve these resources to ensure that all cases before their offices are handled effectively, efficiently and expeditiously.

Vanessa Gibson is a New York City Council member representing the 16th district and the chairwoman of the Council’s Committee on Public Safety.