New York State Bar Association Calls Governor’s Veto of Bill Lifting Ban on Jury Service for Felons Disappointing
12.23.2024
Domenick Napoletano, president of the New York State Bar Association, issued the following statement about Gov. Kathy Hochul’s veto of S206B/A1432C, which lifted the ban on felons serving on a jury:
“All New Yorkers deserve a chance at redemption. It is wrong to deny the rights of citizenship to felons who have paid their debts to society and are trying to start fresh. While helping New Yorkers reclaim their lives, the law the governor vetoed also would have gone a long way toward ensuring that defendants be judged by juries of their peers. That isn’t possible if in New York we continue the path we are now on and ban one of every three Black men from jury service because of the state’s felony exclusion law.
“We commend the bill’s sponsors, state Sen. Cordell Cleare and Assembly Member Jeffrion Aubry, for taking on this important issue.”
Background
In 2022, the New York State Bar Association formed the Task Force on Racism, Social Equity, and the Law. Its report concluded that “felony convictions should not act as a complete bar to serving on a jury.”
