New York City DA Bragg reduces 52% felonies downgraded to misdemeanors

Alvin Bragg, New York City DA, posted reports on his website that showed he had reduced 52% of all felonies to misdemeanors.

According to data posted by the DA’s website, 52% of all felony cases in New York City were downgraded to misdemeanors in 2022. This is compared to 39% that were downgraded in 2019.

Alvin Bragg, District Attorney, ran a campaign for criminal justice reform in 2021. He promised to support changes to the law that permits cash bail for violent crime.

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Bragg won his election and was elected to office on January 1. Just days later, he issued a “Day One” memo to staff, instructing them to lower certain felonies (including armed robberies in commercial buildings) and not to seek jail time for other serious offenses.

Keechant Sewell, a New York Police Department Commissioner, stated in a leaked email at the time that Bragg’s policies could harm the public and undercut justice for victims.

According to the NYPD, overall crime is up 27.6% with 112,755 crimes reported in 2022, compared to the 88,394 reported in 2021.

The same time, there was a reported 13.2% rise in felony assaults. This includes a jump of 20,563 to 23,270; rapes rose from 1,336 and 1,471; robberies increased from 12,033–15,639; and transit crime from 1,316 to 1,865.

The Big Apple has seen a decline in murders from 432 to 372 and a decrease in shootings from 1,688 up to 1,438.

According to data on Bragg’s website, his department declined 35% more felony prosecutions than in 2019. This is after taking into account the delays of the court system in prosecuting cases starting in 2020-22.

According to the DA’s report, bail was requested in 2,518 felony cases in 2022 compared with 3,848 in 2019.