Monroe County Executive Adam Bello says the current New York Bail Reform Law is broken...and it needs to stop letting violent people arrested for gun crimes back on the streets.
Bello said in a Thursday news conference that 35 violent criminals were released in 30 days, including one of the men arrested for Wednesday evening's gun battle on North Clinton Avenue. That exchange of fire between a 34-year-old man and a 16-year-old sent a stray bullet into a 3-year-old who was strapped into the car seat of his parents' vehicle. The 34-year-old was on bail awaiting sentencing for a different gun battle last year.
Bello says that's not OK. He said the solution requires a total partnership of city, county, state and community to overhaul the bail reform law and keep violent gun criminals in jail.
Monroe County Undersheriff Kory Brown says the Sheriff's Office will have extra cars and personnel available to the City in an effort to respond faster to crimes.
Sharing in the outrage over the Clinton Avenue shooting was Mayor Malik Evans, who said the city police force is beginning 12-hour shifts to boost the manpower in the North Clinton area -- one of the city's most violent neighborhoods. Mayor Evans told The Brother Wease Show the goal is to get the "worst of the worst" off the street. He says some are adults and some are as young as 15 and gang "wannbees."
Evans some the offenders are familiar to police and people in the neighborhood and think they can do whatever they want. Oftentimes Evans says they get away with it.