Police unions give thousands to Long Island Dems pushing bail law change
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First-term State Sen. James Gaughran received $11,200 from law enforcement unions and related groups last campaign disclosure period. Photo via State Senate
By David Brand
Two Democratic state senators from Long Island who have pushed Albany to amend the state’s new bail law have received tens of thousands of dollars from law enforcement groups over the past few years, including more than $21,000 in the last six-month financial disclosure period.
State Sens. Todd Kaminsky and James Gaughran received at least $21,200 from state police unions and law enforcement groups in Nassau County, Suffolk County and New York City between July 16, 2019 and January 15, according to campaign finance reports filed with the state Board of Elections.
The pair of first-term Democrats have led the effort to amend the bail law as they face backlash from constituents, fueled by the media and the very police unions that have funded their candidacies.
Gaughran, a senator from Suffolk County who took office last year, received $11,200 from law enforcement groups during the last period, including $2,000 from the Nassau County Police Benevolent Association Political Action Committee and $2,500 from the New York State Troopers PAC.
He previously raised at least $13,000 from law enforcement unions, according to past campaign finance disclosure reports.
“Judges need to be able to make their decisions based on the individual before them,” Gaughran told the Long Island Herald in January, describing his opposition to the new law, which eliminates cash bail on misdemeanors and nonviolent felonies. The measure passed as part of last year’s budget and took effect Jan. 1.
State Sen. Todd Kaminsky. Photo via State Senate
Kaminsky, a first-term senator who won his seat in a 2016 special election to replace the disgraced ex-Sen. Dean Skellos, called amending the bail law a “top priority” at the beginning of January, just days after the law took effect.
Kaminsky received at least $10,000 from law enforcement groups during the last disclosure period, including $2,500 from the New York State Troopers PBA and $2,000 from the Nassau County PBA.
Between Aug. 5, 2016 and June 27, 2019, Kaminsky, a former Queens prosecutor, raised more than $90,000 from law enforcement unions.
Neither Kaminsky nor Gaughran responded to phone calls seeking comment for this story.
Bail is set to ensure defendants have financial incentive to return to court, but the system in place for decades in New York led to low-income defendants — particularly people of color — being held in pretrial detention at a far higher rate than wealthier defendants who could afford to pay for their release. The two Long Island senators say they support the intent of the law, but maintain that the state went too far.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Friday that he would not sign a new budget without changes to the bail law. Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart Cousins previously proposed eliminating cash bail completely while giving judges discretion to send defendants who they find dangerous to jail.
Opponents of that concept say judges are susceptible to the same racial and income biases that have driven inequities in the criminal justice system.
“If our society was truly, ideally what we wanted it to be — judges not judging people based on their economic circumstances or their skin color — I would be for that, but that’s not the case,” Assemblymember Alicia Hyndman told the Eagle earlier this month. “You’re talking about Upstate New York, Long Island … Communities where judges do not reflect the majority of the community and that’s a problem.”
Alyssa Aguilera, co-executive director of VOCAL-NY, accused Kaminsky and Gaughran of “caving to the whims of police unions and law enforcement groups.”
“New Yorkers are counting on their elected leaders to fight for their best interest, not capitulate to fear mongering from white supremacists,” Aguilera said. “Our leaders in the senate and at every level of government should lead with courage.”
A spokesperson for various law enforcement unions that have contributed to Kaminsky and Gaughran’s campaigns questioned why state lawmakers wait until opaque budget negotiations to address bail. He also said it was too early to say whether the unions would turn the taps off if the bail measure is not changed.
“I think when the dust settles people will know where people stood and we’ll go from there,” the spokesperson said. “The devil will be in the details of the budget negotiations.”
