Exonerees, impacted New Yorkers, public defenders, advocates, and concerned citizens launched the “Alliance to Protect Kalief’s Law” today, a statewide coalition dedicated to preserving New York’s common-sense and successful discovery statute, also known as “Kalief’s Law.”

This landmark reform is named in honor of Kalief Browder, a 16-year-old from the Bronx who was wrongfully accused of stealing a backpack in 2010 and languished on Rikers Island for three years awaiting trial. He had no access to the government’s evidence in his case and his family could not afford to pay the $3,000 bail set by a Bronx judge. After his release from Rikers Island, Kalief continued to face emotional and psychological challenges and died by suicide in 2015 at the age of 22.

Since 2020, this law has played a crucial role in helping to prevent wrongful convictions, reduce unjust pretrial incarceration, ensure transparency in the criminal legal system, reveal patterns of police misconduct, and advance due process. The law has also been tremendously successful in resolving cases more quickly and combating court delays.

Despite recent claims relying on misleading, cherry-picked data points, a review of the entire New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services dataset shows that serious cases are not being dismissed at a higher rate because of discovery reform.

The reforms enacted in 2020 were not accompanied by initial funding to assist with compliance, but Albany lawmakers have since allocated tens of millions of dollars to prosecutor offices throughout the state to hire staff, purchase technology, and develop systems to ensure the timely sharing of evidence.

Instead of rolling back progress, lawmakers must ensure that funding for discovery reform is fully maintained in New York State’s Fiscal Year 2026 budget to ensure this historic law fulfills its intended promise.

“New York’s discovery laws have prevented coerced pleas, wrongful convictions, prolonged detention at Rikers, and significant case delays,” said Tina Luongo, Chief Attorney of the Criminal Defense Practice at The Legal Aid Society. “Prosecutors have consistently opposed the changes in the law every year since their enactment, rather than embracing the law and implementing the necessary changes in their offices, as we have done to fulfill our obligations.”

“Reverting to a practice that denies accused people access to the evidence in their cases does nothing to enhance public safety and instead perpetuates an unjust system,” the continued. “The answer is to continue to put processes, staffing, and technology in place that are making a difference. Albany must continue to provide funding and resources without stripping New Yorkers of their fundamental rights.”