Call your District Attorney to protect your immigrant neighbors from Trump!
Under Donald Trump’s new Executive Order, undocumented New Yorkers face new and grave threats of deportation just by being charged with a crime. That’s why we are calling on you to contact your borough’s District Attorney, and ask them for a halt on broken windows prosecutions. Here's how:
1. Call your borough’s DA:
- Manhattan: Cyrus Vance: 614-656-1525
- Bronx: Darcel D. Clark: 205-490-2655
- Queens: Richard Brown: 513-729-6020
- Brooklyn: Eric Gonzalez: 337-660-2661
- Staten Island: Michael McMahon: 210-852-2542
2. You will likely be connected to a voicemail message or be told that the person who picked up your call with deliver the message to your District Attorney. When you leave a message, say something like this (but don’t be afraid to personalize!):
“Hi, my name is _____ . Your office represents “the people of the state of NY” in the borough of ______ and I’m calling as one of your constituents. With Donald Trump’s latest Executive Order, all non-citizen New Yorkers face threats of deportation just by being charged with a crime. I’m calling on you to uphold your duty to protect the people of New York with a halt on prosecuting broken windows offenses and quality of life crimes. I know your office has the power to act on behalf of the people of this state, and we ask you to use your discretion in service of our collective interests for a strong, diverse and welcoming New York.”What is a “broken windows prosecution?” It is when a person is arrested for and then charged with a low-level “quality of life” crime. These offenses include: jumping the subway turnstile, selling DVD’s on the street, forgetting to pay a fine, trespassing in a NYCHA building, littering, and having a small amount of marijuana.
Broken windows arrests have always disproportionately impacted poor communities of color, specifically Black people. But now under Trump, these prosecutions are having devastating consequences for our non-citizen community members. In fact, under the new Executive Order, just being accused of a crime could lead to deportation. The NYPD has stated its intention to cooperate with the federal government’s new enforcement regime and reiterated its continued commitment to broken windows policing.
District Attorneys are the only people who have the power to halt these prosecutions by declining to prosecute these cases.
New York has promised to be a sanctuary city and the DA’s offices need to do their part for the community. Halting broken windows prosecutions is the most immediate way of resisting Trump’s plan for mass deportation while demanding an end to the criminalization of low income New Yorkers of color.
Our goal is to log 2,000 calls to apply the necessary pressure on the DA’s to ensure an immediate halt. I’m confident that the #HereToStay Network can help us reach our goal!
Public Defenders at 5 Boro Defenders
*Note: If you do have an open case in any of the 5 boroughs, we urge you to wait until your case is closed and consulting with your attorney before making a call. For all callers, you do not have to provide personal contact information if you do not feel comfortable doing so. If you are not a US citizen we urge you not to make a call, without first consulting with an attorney.
