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submitted 6 months ago by MicroWave@lemmy.world to c/news@lemmy.world

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul vetoed a bill days before Christmas that would have made it easier for people who have pleaded guilty to crimes to challenge their convictions, a measure that was favored by criminal justice reformers but fiercely opposed by prosecutors.

The Democrat said the bill’s “sweeping expansion of eligibility for post-conviction relief” would “up-end the judicial system and create an unjustifiable risk of flooding the courts with frivolous claims,” in a veto letter released Saturday.

Under existing state law, criminal defendants who plead guilty are usually barred from trying to get their cases reopened based on a new claim of innocence, except in certain circumstances involving new DNA evidence.

The bill passed by the Legislature in June would have expanded the types of evidence that could be considered proof of innocence, including video footage or evidence of someone else confessing to a crime. Arguments that a person was coerced into a false guilty plea would have also been considered.

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[-] themeatbridge@lemmy.world 32 points 6 months ago

Prosecutors and advocates for crime victims warned the bill would have opened the floodgates to endless, frivolous legal appeals by the guilty.

Oh, god, no, the horror! Imagine, all the paperwork of people seeking justice. Perhaps some of them are not actually innocent?! What a ridiculous waste of time, allowing people who may not be actually innocent appeal convictions, just because it will allow wrongfully convicted people to go free.

[-] eestileib@sh.itjust.works 12 points 6 months ago

Only insurrectionist white people get endless appeals silly! People of color go fill the for-profit prisons, it's the circle of life!

[-] pohart@programming.dev 3 points 6 months ago

I think ny only has public prisons

[-] pohart@programming.dev 5 points 6 months ago

Looked a little deeper and NY only has public prisons, but there are private "detention centers" whatever that horror is.

this post was submitted on 24 Dec 2023
228 points (99.6% liked)

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