House Republicans Target Bragg, NYC ‘Crime Wave’ in Field Trip to Anti-Trump Prosecutor’s Stomping Ground

House Republicans holding a field hearing Monday in downtown Manhattan on crime in New York City are expected to wade into the debate over bail and criminal justice reform measures at the state level that some in law enforcement say are making the job of policing the city harder instead of easier. After President Trump was indicted last month by the Manhattan district attorney, Alvin Bragg, the House Judiciary Committee announced that it would hold the hearing to examine Mr. Bragg’s track record in keeping criminals off the streets as he targets Mr. Trump. The committee is headed by an Ohio Republican, James Comer, who is one of Mr. Trump’s most vociferous supporters on Capitol Hill.In an appearance on MSNBC’s “The Sunday Show,” the New York police commissioner, Keechant Sewell, said that violent crime is actually down in the city, but the perception remains that it is less safe now than it was only a couple years ago. He said bail reform measures that make it harder to keep people incarcerated championed by Democrats in New York’s capital, Albany, are complicating the job of policing the city.“There are a limited number of people in this city that continue to commit a disproportionate number of crimes,” Ms. Sewell said. “I have said over and over again that judges should have the ability to determine whether someone is a public safety threat, when they determine whether they should remand, set bail, or release.”“I think those [bail] reforms were well-meaning, but there are people taking advantage of those reforms, and it’s causing detriment to our city,” the commissioner added.Ms. Sewell’s comments come the same day that the New York Times reported that a substantial number of shoplifting arrests in the city in 2022 involved a small number of repeat offenders. A study by the police department found that only 327 people were responsible for nearly a third of all shoplifting arrests last year. Collectively, those 327 people were arrested more than 6,000 times during the year and released to reoffend almost immediately.Despite the decline in violent crime, petty theft rates in New York have been skyrocketing in recent years. Complaints have nearly doubled over the past five years, peaking at 64,000 last year. Only about 34 percent resulted in arrests, about half of the rate of arrests only five years ago. Under New York law, shoplifting less than $1,000 of merchandise is considered a misdemeanor.Criminal justice reform advocates argue that shoplifting is a victimless crime borne out of necessity by people either struggling financially or trying to feed an addiction. Police, though, say the crime increasingly is being carried out by organized criminal gangs and repeat offenders, most of whom escape jail time under new bail laws in the state.The Times reported that these “smash and grab” gangs that often break windows and grab expensive items in display windows disproportionately targeted specific stores last year. Seven chain pharmacies and 18 department stores accounted for about 20 percent of all shoplifting complaints.Small retailers in the city are also scared, the Times reports, and are often powerless to stop the shoplifting. One of the witnesses expected to testify at Monday’s judiciary committee hearing is bodega owner Jose Alba, who was charged by Mr. Bragg with murder after he stabbed an assailant who assaulted him in his store last year.Mr. Alba spend several days at New York’s infamous Rikers Island jail when he was unable to come up with the $250,000 bail demanded by Mr. Bragg’s office. Following public pressure in the case, the charges were dropped.

House Republicans Target Bragg, NYC ‘Crime Wave’ in Field Trip to Anti-Trump Prosecutor’s Stomping Ground

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