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PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Juval O. Scott, Executive Director of The Bronx Defenders
4:05:51
·
145 sec
Juval O. Scott, Executive Director of The Bronx Defenders, testifies about the importance of increasing funding for public defender personnel in New York City. She highlights the effectiveness of their holistic model in reducing mass incarceration and saving money for New Yorkers, while emphasizing the challenges faced by public defenders due to high caseloads and low pay.
- The Bronx Defenders has saved New Yorkers $65 million over ten years through their work, without harming public safety.
- Scott requests a 25% increase in personnel funding to properly value and compensate public defender talent.
- She argues that increased funding would demonstrate a commitment to constitutionally mandated services for vulnerable New Yorkers.
Juval O. Scott
4:05:51
Hi.
4:05:51
Good afternoon.
4:05:52
And thank you for making time for oops.
4:05:56
Can you hear me now?
4:05:58
Thank you.
4:05:59
Good afternoon.
4:06:00
And thank you for making time for this panel.
4:06:02
My name is Joufoul Scott, and I have the privilege of leading the Bronx Defenders, which as I'm sure you know is located in the poorest congressional district in the country.
4:06:11
Our office employs a holistic model and there have been studies that demonstrate that the use of our model has been proven to lower rates of mass incarceration through shortened sentences, reduced incarceration rates, and reduced pretrial detention.
4:06:28
A study showed that our work has saved New Yorkers a 65,000,000 over ten years and more since then.
4:06:38
And we did that without harming public safety.
4:06:41
And that says nothing of the cascading social and economic benefits of keeping people out of jail, in their homes, and with their families and employed.
4:06:49
At the Bronx Defenders, we're fortunate to attract some of this country's top talent to serve the 20,000 people per year who rely on our services.
4:06:59
And they've committed their their talent to public service in one of the most expensive cities in the country.
4:07:05
Being a public defender, especially in this moment, it can be grueling.
4:07:09
The caseloads rarely ease up.
4:07:11
The hours can be long.
4:07:13
The emotional weight can be heavy.
4:07:15
And these are in combination with the soaring cost of living in the New York City area.
4:07:20
For many who would love to choose a path in public defense or have a long career in public defense, the pay is a barrier.
4:07:28
Our clients need my people focused on the people we served and not on whether they can afford increased rents, increased food costs, and transportation because our pay remains historically low and fails to keep pace with the rate of inflation.
4:07:45
Public defender talent should be properly valued and compensated, and public defender offices can only do that if the city increases its funding for public defender personnel.
4:07:54
Doing so would demonstrate a true commitment and appreciation for the constitutionally mandated services we provide on behalf of some of the most vulnerable New Yorkers.
4:08:05
In March, we were here and we asked the city to increase our personnel funding by 25%.
4:08:10
We made that we make that same request today because a commitment to public defense commands more.
4:08:15
Thank you.