Bail reform not on agenda of Eric Adams’ NYC crime summit, key attendee says

Mayor Eric Adams announced a major summit conference on the Big Apple’s crime problem Friday and said the state’s controversial bail reform law will be on the table — but a key attendee said it isn’t even part of the agenda.

During a morning appearance on CNBC’s “Squawk Box,” Adams touted the planned summit after being asked whether bail reform “gives everyone the feeling that…there are no consequences” for the city’s bad guys.

“Officers are doing their job, but once we apprehend people, we must send a strong message in our criminal justice system: It won’t be the catch-repeat action that’s taking place right now,” Adams said.

“And we’re hoping that’s what the summit this weekend is able to accomplish. How do we deal with this bottleneck? How do we deal with dangerous people still on our streets?”

But Leading civil rights lawyer Norman Siegel — who City Hall said will be part of the weekend conference at Gracie Mansion — told The Post that bail reform wasn’t among the subjects for the two days of panel discussions.

Norman Siegel
Norman Siegel told The Post that bail reform was not a topic listed for the two-day panel discussions, despite what Mayor Adams said.
William Farrington

“We don’t think we can find common ground on the bail law,” he said.

“There will be no panel on the bail law.”

Siegel, the former longtime executive director of the New York Civil Liberties Union, said the panels would address issues including “prosecutors not getting discovery [evidence] to defendants in a timely manner” and whether more people should be hired to expedite the process.

“The focus should be to find common ground despite our differences,” he said.

“The criminal justice system is neither just or effective.”

All five city district attorneys — including embattled Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg and Brooklyn DA Eric Gonzalez — will be among the summit participants, according to a list released by City Hall.

Eric Adams
Adams made an appearance on MSNBC’s “Squawk Box,” telling viewers that bail reform would be addressed at the summit.
Kevin C. Downs for NY Post

Both state Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins (D-Yonkers) and Assembly Leader Carl Heastie (D-The Bronx) — who passed bail reform and have resisted efforts to roll it back — will not be there and will send their legal counsels instead.

in 2019, Gonzalez also announced a soft-on-crime plan called “Justice 2020” but earlier this year called for “tweaks” to the 2019 bail reform law, which critics — including the NYPD — have blamed for fueling crime and recidivism.

Bragg has faced a firestorm of criticism — and an exodus of veteran prosecutors — since imposing a series of soft-on-crime policies after he took office on Jan. 1.

Protesters gather outside of Assemblyman Carl Heastie's Bronx office demanding that he sign a bill to change NY State Bail Reform laws.
Protesters gather outside of Assemblyman Carl Heastie’s Bronx office demanding that he sign a bill to change NY State Bail Reform laws.
Dennis A. Clark

Gov. Kathy Hochul — who in July rejected Adams’ call for a special session of the Legislature to address crime — will be sending her policy director, according to the list

The Democratic governor, who’s been losing ground in recent polls to Republican challenger Lee Zeldin, has said there would be no action on bail reform before the Legislature reconvenes in January.

State Attorney General Letitia James — who on Wednesday said officials need “to be looking at bail reform” — is sending her chief of staff.

NY Sheriffs escort Glenn Hirsch
New Yorkers have expressed concern for their safety as crime has surged in 2022.
Stephen Yang

James has previously championed cashless bail and her sudden shift in tone came after a new poll showed her largely unknown GOP rival, Michael Henry, had narrowed her lead to 11 percentage points.

NYPD Commissioner Keechant Sewell and Deputy Mayor for Public Safety Philip Banks will also attend.

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texasstandard.news contributed to this report.

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