Res 0016-2018

By Council Members Borelli and Holden Whereas, The current climate in our country has deteriorated to the point where the brave men and women that serve and protect our communities from nefarious individuals are being abused and disrespected via various social movements; and Whereas, As residents of New York City, we are fortunate to have one of the most iconic and well respected police departments in the world, which sadly puts an unusually large bull's-eye on our officers; and Whereas, You need look no further than the assassinations of NYPD officers Wenjian Liu and Rafael Ramos in 2014 to understand the gravity of this problem, or earlier that same year when NYPD Officer Kenneth Healey was struck in the back of the head with a hatchet, but tragically this is a national problem; and Whereas, In July of 2016, various reports indicate Micah Johnson cowardly ambushed law enforcement officers by sniper fire in Dallas, Texas, killing five officers and two civilians, while injuring nine others; and Whereas, Recent assaults on law enforcement by spineless individuals, such as the ambush-style shootings of police officers in Texas, Missouri, and Florida show that law enforcement is being targeted as a class; and Whereas, The United States Federal Bureau of Investigations has defined a hate crime as a "criminal offense against a person or property motivated in whole or in part by an offender's bias against a race, religion, disability, sexual orientation, ethnicity, gender, or gender identity."; and Whereas, Presently, New York State does not include law enforcement as part of a protected class for hate crimes and therefore the penalties for crimes against law enforcement offices are deficient; and Whereas, Pursuant to the New York State Penal Code Section 485.10, the law presently upgrades any offense deemed a hate crime to the next level of severity and an increase in the severity of the punishment; and Whereas, All malicious acts against our State and City's law enforcement should be treated as a crime against a protected class because officers are worthy of our protection; and Whereas, New York City's bravest should be given these extended protections from the cowards that specifically target law enforcement officer as a whole; and Whereas, The New York State Legislature should introduce and pass legislation that defines offenses against law enforcement as hate crimes; and Whereas, Establishing certain crimes, including assaults on uniformed law enforcement officers as hate crimes will ensure that the perpetrators of such targeted offenses against police officers are subject to harsher punishments, leaving no doubt that Blue Lives Matter; now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the Council of the City of New York calls on the New York State Legislature to introduce and pass and for the Governor to sign legislation making offenses against uniformed law enforcement officers hate crimes. WJH LS 3591 1/12/18