September 14, 2017 | New York Amsterdam News
As Manhattan’s district attorney, it is my responsibility to make our criminal justice system fairer, more efficient and more effective for all. And if we are going to build a more just system, we must begin by safely reducing unnecessary contact with the criminal justice system. Each new initiative contemplated by my office is scrutinized through that lens, and if a past policy inhibits that goal or contributes to an injustice, we have a duty to reform it.
New York Amsterdam NewsSeptember 7, 2017 | Politico
Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance announced that his office is changing its plea guidelines for marijuana arrests to lighten penalties for first- and second-time offenders, effective Tuesday. The new approach is expected to help some immigrants avoid penalties that could lead to deportation and comes amid backlash from municipalities and states over President Donald Trump's immigration policies — specifically the use of courts to identify and deport undocumented immigrants. Vance announced that his office is also working on a policy, to be implemented in the spring, to end prosecutions for low-level drug possession.
PoliticoSeptember 5, 2017 | The Manhattan District Attorney
“Today’s announcement by the Trump Administration to remove protection from deportation for young people brought into this country by their parents is a dark moment in our history. Tens of thousands of New Yorkers will be directly impacted by the end of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals policy, and the potential removal of law-abiding, tax-paying, and hardworking individuals from schools, jobs, communities, and entire industries will have a ripple effect far beyond that circle.
The Manhattan District AttorneyAugust 23, 2017 | CNN
New York's turnaround on violent crime has improved the lives of all New Yorkers. In 1990, there were more than 2,000 murders in our city. Last year, there were 335. I'm proud to say that New York remains the safest big city in the nation, at least according to the Economist's Safe Cities Index. But this progress could come to a screeching halt if the Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act, known as CCRA, passes Congress.
CNNAugust 16, 2017 | The New York Times
The Manhattan district attorney, Cyrus Vance Jr., stepped into the void left by the Legislature when he agreed l to pay for Governor Cuomo’s prison education plan with more than $7 million in criminal forfeiture money secured from banks. Lauding what he described as a public safety measure, Mr. Vance said, “It makes no sense to send someone to prison with no pathway for them to succeed.”
The New York TimesAugust 15, 2017 | The Manhattan District Attorney
“I applaud Governor Cuomo’s swift response to the events in Charlottesville by announcing legislation today to add rioting or inciting a riot to New York’s Hate Crime statute. Domestic terrorism perpetrated by white supremacists and neo-Nazis has no place in this city, and will be prosecuted by this office.
The Manhattan District AttorneyAugust 9, 2017 | The Manhattan District Attorney
Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance, Jr., today announced the dismissal of 240,472 summonses ten years or older, eliminating the collateral consequences of years-old summons warrants for hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers and enabling them to collaborate more fully in their communities without fear of arrest. District Attorney Vance personally moved to vacate the summons warrants in Manhattan Criminal Court before Supervising Judge Tamiko Amaker, before moving to dismiss the 240,472 summonses themselves. In total, approximately 644,500 summons cases were dismissed simultaneously in Manhattan, Queens, Brooklyn, and the Bronx.
The Manhattan District AttorneyAugust 7, 2017 | Daily News
The Manhattan DA’s office is donating $7.3 million to college education and reentry services in state prisons — which will serve 2,500 inmates over the next five years, officials said Monday.
DA Cyrus Vance Jr. will use money collected during prosecutions for the initiative, boosting a program that currently relies on mostly private donations, the office said.
“It makes no sense to send someone to prison with no pathway for them to succeed when they get out,” Vance said in a statement.
Daily NewsAugust 7, 2017 | The Manhattan District Attorney
Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance, Jr. today announced the award of $7.3 million to fund educational programming and reentry services at 17 New York State prisons over the next five years. The College-in-Prison Reentry Program is being funded through the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office’s Criminal Justice Investment Initiative. It will create more than 2,500 seats for college-level education and training for incarcerated New Yorkers across the state. This program will significantly increase the likelihood of successful reentry into the community thereby reducing recidivism rates.
The Manhattan District AttorneyJuly 27, 2017 | The Manhattan District Attorney
New York County District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance Jr., Bronx District Attorney Darcel D. Clark, Acting Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez, and Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown today announced that nearly 700,000 summons warrants that are 10 years or older will be vacated in the next few weeks. The warrants in question were issued for failure to pay a ticket for a minor infraction, subjecting individuals to arrest as well as carrying other negative consequences.
The Manhattan District Attorney