7/31/2019 Wednesday Watch on Injustice, Edition 56 (06!20!2012)

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WednesdayWatchOn InjustIceBill BastukPresident ICH/Y

Dannielle HilleCommunications Coordinator

Jeffrey DeskovicEditor

YOUYOUITCOULD HAPPEN TOYOU!

It Could Happen To YOU Justice Action Group Requests Your Help

Ask The Assembly To Send A Message For Simple Justice Reform

For more information contact Bill Bastuk- It Could Happen To You Justice Action Group

Chairperson at 585-503-6826 or itcouldhappen@rochester.rr.com

Assemblyman Joseph Lentol (Brooklyn) and David Gantt (Rochester) have introduced

legislation (Assembly Bill 10648) advocated by It Could Happen To You Inc. and the It Could

Happen To You Justice Action Group along with the New State Association of Criminal Defense

Attorney, New York State Civil Liberty Union and other coalition members to require

prosecutors to turn over all evidence relevant to the defense of the accused at arraignment.

Common SenseYes. Required for Prosecutors No.

In the closing days of the 2012 session of the New York State Legislature please take a moment

to contact your NY State Assembly representative and request their working assistance for the

passage of Assembly Bill 10648, before the end of session this Thursday.

The following common sense points may be communicated to state representatives.

Key Talking Points for the It Could Happen to You Justice Action Group

1. American Justice was established on the principal that the accused are innocent until provenguilty. Today the opposite is true. From the moment a citizen is arrested, and at times evenquestioned, the system is manipulated to create presumption of guilt.

2. New York Prosecutors practice trial by ambush, citizens accused of crimes are systemicallydenied vital information essential to prove their innocence and thus dragged through an

indictment and trial, which results in a permanent damage to their reputation and great financialcost. There will always be the snears and steers from those who think they just got off.

3. Every year thousands of citizens are exposed to false accusation, false conviction andwrongful imprisonment.

4. New Yorks discovery rules also inhibit, at great taxpayers expense, prompt guilty pleas fromcitizens who would be willing to resolve their cases if shown the evidence against them.

5. The newly enacted sweeping DNA law make automatic discovery even more essential as asafeguard to ensure the reliability and integrity of the testing and preservation system. DNA

exonerations of many convicted prisoners confirm that restrictive discovery practices docontribute to wrongful convictions.

6. Prosecutors who violate Brady and New Yorks antiquated 45 day rule do so knowing theyface no legal sanctions. As a result discovery misconduct has essentially been sanctioned under

current law.

20 June 2012

vol. 2/No 56

7/31/2019 Wednesday Watch on Injustice, Edition 56 (06!20!2012)

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Share our Wednesday Watch on Injustice with your family and friends.

Officers- Bill Bastuk- FounderRoseanne Corrigan- Vice President

Steering Committee- Paul LaBarber- Art Directions, Etc. Alice Green- Center for Law and Justice Melanie Trimble- NYCLU

GabrielSayegh- Drug Policy Alliance NYLisa Schreibersdorf- Brooklyn Defender Services Don Thompson- ETKS Defense Pam Booker- Prison Families ofNY

Jeffrey Deskovic- The Jeffrey Deskovic Foundation For JusticeDavid Kaczynski- New Yorkers for Alternatives to the Death Penalty

IT COULD HAPPEN TO YOU invites readers to submit comments to:

CONTACT@ITCOULDHAPPEN2YOU.ORG

Please visit our website at:www.itcouldhappen2you.organd link us to your organization orpersonal website.

Also dont forget to visit us on Facebook(Click Here) and like our page.

7. New York lags far behind other states in discovery reform. States that have replaced restrictivediscovery with expedited discovery include New Jersey, Massachusetts, Florida, North Carolina,

Arizona and Ohio.

8. Automatic Discovery will help make New York a leader in justice reform.

9. In 2008 the Lippman Commission recommended broad reform of discovery. In five years thelegislature and governor have failed to act on this recommendation.

B. Key Points in the Discovery Bill recommended by the It Could Happen To You

Coalition.

1. The prosecution is required to provide discovery materials without a motion by defense before

or at arraignment. This shall include all witness information, all tangible objects, all transcriptsof the testimony of a person who has testified before a grand jury when the testimony relates to

the subject matter of the case, weather the prosecution has any evidence or information that mayhave been provided by a confidential or jailhouse informant.

2. Videotaping of all interrogations and confessions from the start of the interrogation, not just

the confession itself.

3. Reciprocal Discovery is required. The defense is required to share all their material after itreceives the prosecutors discovery package.

4. The court may order or grant discovery to the defendant on the condition that the material beavailable only to the counsel for the defendant. This is to protect the identity of certain witnesses.

5. The prosecution and the defense must certify in writing that they have exercised due diligencein complying with their discovery obligations and this certification must identify each item that

was provided.

6. The proposed bill provides for a range of legal remedies for failure to comply including the

ability of the court to order further discovery or order a mistrial.

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