The Legal Aid Society has secured a decision in People v. Hudson affirming that survivors of domestic violence who face criminal charges related to their abuse cannot be forced, as a condition of a plea agreement, to waive their right to a hearing that considers their history of abuse during sentencing.

In 2019, New York State passed the Domestic Violence Survivors Justice Act (DVSJA), a groundbreaking statute that established critical protections for justice-involved survivors of domestic violence. The law allows judges to consider, through a DVSJA hearing, whether an individual’s history of abuse – when related to their criminal conduct – makes them eligible for a drastically reduced sentence. This long overdue avenue of relief enhances judges’ ability to impose fairer sentences on criminalized survivors across New York State.

“We celebrate the Court of Appeals’ ruling today that affirms that every survivor in the New York criminal legal system is entitled to a DVSJA hearing, regardless of whether they choose to accept a plea deal,” said Paris DeYoung, Supervising Attorney with Legal Aid’s Criminal Appeals Bureau. “DVSJA hearings provide critical information and context that enhances judges’ ability to deliver real justice to survivors of domestic violence.”

“As the Court affirmed today, prosecutors may not sweep this information under the rug by forcing survivors to waive their right to these hearings,” she continued. “Our clients, and all justice-involved survivors across our state, deserve access to the lifechanging sentencing ranges that the DVSJA provides.”