VOCAL-NY is sponsoring a “Wrongful Conviction Day of Action” rally to boost support for the Challenging Wrongful Convictions Act.
Activists are bringing awareness to the wrongful conviction problem in New York and pushing for reforms through things like passage of New York State Senator Zellnor Myrie’s bill S215, which would provide more resources for individuals looking to be exonerated.
According to the Innocence Project, a nonprofit legal organization that helps free innocent people from prison, “Pretrial decisions by courts and prosecutors also greatly impact the likelihood of wrongful convictions for Black and brown people. Black and Latinx people accused of crimes are more likely to be detained pretrial, putting their jobs, housing, and families at risk.
“When prosecutors offer a plea bargain that would allow a person immediate release from pretrial detention, there is a strong incentive for an innocent person to agree to plead guilty and accept responsibility for a crime they didn’t commit. Nearly 25% of those exonerated since 1989 pled guilty, and nearly 75% of this number are Black and brown people.”
The Innocence Project has urged people to call Gov. Hochul’s office at 518-888-7946 and urge her to sign Myrie’s bill.
The VOCAL-NY “Wrongful Conviction Day of Action” rally takes place Monday, Oct. 2, at 12 noon in Manhattan’s Foley Square.
For more information, contact VOCAL-NY by phone at 718-802-9540 or email at info@vocal-ny.org.