Due to a series of high-profile cases where people are released into the streets without bail only to break the law again, more New York politicians are now supporting the passage of the tougher bail law.
State Assemblywoman Inez Dickens revealed she recently spoke to Lt. Gov. Brian Benjamin regarding the case of Frank Abrokwa, the Bronx poop attacker with a lengthy rap sheet that included 22 prior arrests and dozens of other sealed arrests since 1999.
Sources said Abrokwa was arrested after he allegedly smeared his feces in the face of a woman at a Bronx subway station on Feb. 21 only to be freed without bail.
Dickens, a Harlem Democrat said he told Benjamin that in view of the incident they should do something about it to avoid a similar incident in the future.
To address the situation, she proposed legislation that would make throwing or smearing a victim with feces or other bodily fluids a felony crime.
“My bill is giving everyone an opportunity to think about bail reform. This is something we need to look at,” Dickens said.
Sen. James Skoufis, a Rockland County Democrat, also backs a tougher bill law saying that the state budget must include amending the bail law to give judges the authority to order bail for defendants with lengthy rap sheets.
According to reports, the budget is expected to be approved by April.
“You can’t be shoplifting on Monday, get a ticket and shoplift the same store on Tuesday,” Skoufis, chairman of the Senate Investigations Committee said.
Moreover, it was learned that 12 Democratic senators are looking to tweak the no-cash bail law despite resistance from Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart Cousins, D-Yonkers, and Deputy Majority Leader Mike Gianaris, D-Queens.
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