#New York’s deadly revolving door for gun criminals

Wonder why shootings have skyrocketed in New York during a pandemic even though overall crime is down? Look no further than the way the politicians have turned the court system into a revolving door.

In an interview this week, NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea blamed the rising gun violence on a Legislature that’s more worried about criminals’ well-being than their victims’.

The 2019 bail “reform” law eliminated cash bail for most non-violent crimes, including some gun-possession cases, and effectively encouraged judges to err in favor of the criminal.

So while gun arrests are higher than ever, Shea says the changes put 90 percent of the arrestees back on the streets.

The NYPD’s year-end crime data show shootings and homicides up drastically from 2019 to 2020. Yet the mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice bragged in May that the city’s jail population is on a continual decline.

Of the 3,793 people arrested on gun charges last year from Jan. 1 to Nov. 30, only 450 remained in jail. Of the released, 247 were accused of a new crime within 60 days. But only 32 of those repeat offenders are in jail.

Mayor de Blasio recognized the connection last February, admitting that the crime jump is almost certainly related to problematic bail reforms.

Even after the courts recover from the current pandemic-driven backlog, Shea warns, shooting numbers won’t drop unless the revolving door ends.

Until then, New York will continue to be an “open door” for the thugs who get off on waving guns around only to walk away with a slap on the wrist.