jay-jacobs
NEW YORK (77WABC) — New York State Democratic Party chairman Jay Jacobs says he agrees with Mayor Eric Adams over Governor Kathy Hochul and legislative leaders by calling for a fix to the controversial bail reform law.
Jacobs — the Nassau County Democratic leader — told The New York Post he also believes that judges should be given the discretion to detain pre-trial suspects who were previously convicted of serious or violent crimes.
“I do think there needs to be tweaks to the bail law,” Jacobs said. “I favor giving more discretion to judges in cases especially where the defendant has a background of committing serious or violent crimes. To me, that’s common sense.”
New York changed its bail law first in 2019. It was modified a year later by stopping judges from setting bail for most misdemeanors and non-violent felonies.
Jacobs’ call for judicial discretion puts him at odds with Hochul, as well as Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, who last week said they opposed changes to the bail law.
