The number of inmates in New York City jails has dipped to historic levels with fewer people being admitted into city lockups as officials cut free inmates deemed vulnerable to coronavirus.
Since mid-March, only about 600 people have been jailed awaiting trial, compared to 3,300 over the period this time last year, city officials said.
The majority of the decline can likely be attributed to the relaxed bail laws, as well as the nearly 65 percent reduction in arrests by the NYPD.
Over the last four weeks, cops made nearly 12,500 fewer arrests compared to the same time last year, NYPD data shows.
Some district attorneys have also declined to prosecute low-level crimes amid the pandemic.
Mayor Bill de Blasio touted the reduction Tuesday as a “historic milestone” over his time in office.
“This achievement is one part of the overall effort to create a system that is smaller, safer, and fairer for all,” the mayor said.
The city has cut free roughly 2,000 inmates since mid-March, the majority of whom got their freedom over fears of the spread of the coronavirus in jail, officials said.
“This dramatic reduction in the detainee population is a significant development which has allowed us to increase social distancing within our facilities as we deploy all available measures to fight the COVID-19 virus,” said Department of Correction Commissioner Cynthia Brann.
The DOC recently issued strict enhanced social-distancing guidelines and put out a plan to equip all its staffers with personal protective equipment.
Sources said at least 50 of the inmates who were back on the streets due to the virus concerns have reoffended at least once since they were sprung.
Advocates also called Tuesday for Gov. Andrew Cuomo to release the nearly 10,000 elderly inmates statewide and 4,500 people serving sentences of less than a year after the death of 61-year-old Leonard Carter in Queensboro Prison last week.
Carter, who was convicted of murder in the 1990s, was set to be paroled in April but died six weeks before his release.
