On September 28, 2018, federal judge William H. Pauley III denied a motion by the city of New York seeking to dismiss a proposed class-action lawsuit filed by ECBAWM and co-counsel Romano & Kuan PLLC on behalf of presumptively innocent criminal defendants held for hours or days in New York City jails despite being entitled to release on bail. The court held that “Plaintiffs adequately allege that their interest in paying bail and being released after paying bail has been infringed by the City’s deliberate indifference.” The suit alleges that the City is responsible for unreasonable systemic delays in accepting bail payments and in processing detainees for release once bail is posted. The complaint details a Kafka-esque system where antiquated technology, inadequate staffing, and indifference conspire to keep thousands of New Yorkers each year in jail for hours or days without any legal basis. The court’s decision ruled that these allegations are sufficient to claim violations of the United States Constitution and New York law. The case will now proceed to discovery.

ECBAWM’s Matt Brinckerhoff, Debbie Greenberger, and David Lebowitz, along with Julia Kuan of Romano & Kuan, represent the plaintiffs.

“City Jails Regularly Violate Detainees’ Rights: Lawsuit,” New York Daily News