Safer NY Act is a package of bills in the New York State Legislature that would help increase police transparency and help increase accountability to New Yorkers' most common encounters with police. The #SaferNYAct includes: the Police Statistics and Transparency (STAT) Act, codifying and strengthening the Special Prosecutor executive order, reducing Unnecessary Arrests for low-level, ticketable offenses, repealing the NYS police secrecy law (CRL section 50-a), and legalizing marijuana with strong attention paid to ensuring that resources are reinvested in communities most harmed by prohibition.
In response to the ongoing legislative session in New York state, the following statement can be attributed to Carolyn Martinez-Class, spokesperson for Communities United for Police Reform:
In response to New York Governor Andrew Cuomo’s 2020 State of The State address, Communities United for Police Reform released the following statement, which can be attributed to spokesperson Nahal Zamani:
"We’re disappointed in Governor Cuomo’s failure to address reducing police violence and improving police accountability and transparency in New York State.
In a letter to Governor Cuomo, sixty-four civil rights, good government and community organizations from across the state of New York are calling for a full, statewide repeal of New York’s Section 50-a, a counterproductive provision in state law that protects police secrecy, including in cases of misconduct and abuse. A full repeal of 50-a will increase the transparency of police misconduct and allow communities timely access to important misconduct and discipline records ac
Retired Chief Brendan Cox: “Repealing New York’s 50-a law is a critical step to protect the public safety of all New Yorkers.”
On the eve of the 2020 legislative session, retired Albany Chief of Police Brendan Cox took to the pages of the Albany Times Union today to call for the repeal of New York State’s police secrecy law, Section 50-a, which hides police misconduct and abuse records from the public. Cox argued that overturning the law is a “practical solution” that will help restore trust between police departments and the communities they serve.
Mothers of Eric Garner, Ramarley Graham & Sean Bell join Other Advocates Testify to Urge Legislature to Fully Repeal 50-a
New York, NY – On October 17, New Yorkers, including mothers of those killed by NYPD officers, and other police accountability advocates testified before the State Senate Committee on Codes in support of a bill to repeal New York state’s police secrecy law, 50-a (S.3695-Bailey/A-2513 O’Donnell).
Group calls on NYS legislature to repeal state law 50-a in 2020 legislative session
New York – Today, New York families impacted by police violence joined progressive and community organizations to slam the state’s legislative leaders and Governor Cuomo for failing to pass the Safer NY Act, a package of bills designed to increase police accountability and enhance public safety for all New Yorkers.
