New York State Assemblyman Joe DeStefano released the following statement on prison strikes impacting correctional facilities across New York State.
He is calling on Governor Hochul and Legislators to repeal “soft on crime” legislation that he believes puts the lives of Correctional Officers at risk.
“The pro-criminal, anti-law enforcement policies of the Progressive Democrats are boiling over at New York prisons where both corrections officers and inmate lives are at risk.
While l don’t condone unlawful actions of public employees, the men and women who run the jails have had enough and are protesting the horrendous conditions at 25 facilities across the state.
The crisis in our criminal justice system stems from Gov. Hochul’s decision to close jails and increase the pressure on existing facilities.
The so-called HALT Act took away disciplinary tools, and the Democrats have gone as far as to allow prisoners to obtain the personal information of their jailers. Staffing has been drastically reduced.
The Governor is sending in the National Guard to crack down on the protestors.
What she should be doing is sitting down with the Legislators who saw this coming and repeal the laws that have made the situation in the jails so dangerous.
Defund the police, cashless bail, putting criminal records off limits to employers, and the steady stream of anti-police rhetoric out of Albany do not help.
We need to repeal the Progressive criminal justice “reforms” before anyone else gets killed.”
New York State Assemblyman Joe DeStefano