A federal class action lawsuit aimed at Governor Andrew Cuomo and the administrators of New York State’s Unified Court System claims people charged with misdemeanors in the Bronx are not getting their constitutionally guaranteed rights to a speedy trial and due process.

Robin Steinberg, Executive Director of The Bronx Defenders, and Ilann Mazel, a partner with Emery Celli Brinckerhoff & Abady LLP, which is co-counsel in the case along with the law firm Morrison & Foerster (both pro bono), join to discuss.

In 2014, the misdemeanor arraignments in Bronx Criminal Court were significantly fewer than the number of case filings in Manhattan Brooklyn and Queens and, yet Bronx Criminal Court had more misdemeanor cases pending at the end of the year and in December 2013, and the Bronx had more misdemeanor cases pending in excess of one year than the four other boroughs of New York City combined, according to The Bronx Defenders' research. 

Robin Steinberg said the Bronx is such an outlier, mainly because of it's status as one of the poorest ares in the state and country. 

"The Bronx is the poorest borough in New York City. It has the highest minority population. It's the poorest county in the state, and quite frankly, the South Bronx is the poorest congressional district in the country," Steinberg said. "It's been overlooked; it's been underfunded. There hasn't been enough attention paid to it and we are bringing many, many, many residents of the Bronx through the criminal justice system on very minor offenses, and all of that is combining together to create a perfect storm of horrible."