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AGENCY TESTIMONY
Hate crimes unit expansion and its impact
5:12:47
ยท
83 sec
Alvin Bragg discusses the expansion of the Manhattan DA's hate crimes unit, its funding, and the impact of this expansion on prosecutions and community outreach.
- The City Council provided $1,700,000 to expand the hate crimes unit
- The unit grew from 2-3 lawyers to approximately 15 lawyers
- Additional investigators and outreach personnel were added, including Cantonese-speaking investigators
- Hate crime prosecutions increased from 28 in 2020 to over 100 in 2024
- The expansion has improved both investigations and prosecutions, as well as community partnership work
Alvin Bragg
5:12:47
In my first year in office, I came before you and asked, as we were in the middle of a spike in anti AAPI hate crime, for additional funding, and you provided an additional $1,700,000 to expand our hate crimes unit.
5:13:01
We went from a unit with two or three lawyers to one that has approximately 15 lawyers.
5:13:07
We were able to add investigators, outreach personnel, and that work has made an extraordinary difference.
5:13:14
That funding has made an extraordinary difference both in investigations and in prosecutions, and then also the community partnership work we do.
5:13:23
D.
5:13:23
A.
5:13:23
Gonzalez mentioned at the top of his remarks trust and how we need that trust in communities.
5:13:28
I literally had in my first month members of the AAPI community said, You don't speak my language.
5:13:34
As a result of your funding, we now have two investigators, fluent in Cantonese, that's helped extraordinarily in our hate crime work.
5:13:43
So I thank you for that.
5:13:45
It's both in the courtroom, but also in the communities, that funding.
5:13:50
And again, it's sad that we are where we are.
5:13:53
It's been an incredible, very significant expansion from 28 hate crime prosecutions in 2020 to over a hundred prosecutions in 2024.
5:14:02
So we are sad about the fact that the work is there to be done, but are grateful to you for the support and able to do the work ably.