The stage is set for the City Council to vote on whether to override Mayor Eric Adam’s veto of legislation knowns as the “How Many Stops Act” and a ban on solitary confinement in city jails.
Adams made his rounds on local news programs Wednesday morning, continuing his campaign against both bills, which he believes will compromise public safety.
“if this bill is overrode by the City Council, that before we executed, let’s correct the parts of it that is going to be burdensome to catching people who are dangerous in our city,” Adams said on “Mornings On 1″ Tuesday.
Mayor Adams has consistently denied that the city uses solitary confinement in the first place.
Last month, both pieces of legislation were passed by the City Council with a veto-proof majority.
Thirty-five members of the City Council voted in favor of the How Many Stops Act and thirty-nine voted in favor of banning solitary confinement in city jails.
Two-thirds majority, or 34 votes, is all that is needed to successfully override a mayoral veto.
City Council Speaker Adriane Adams said she confident they will have the votes to get it done.
“That is why the council created the How Many Stops Act to address the lack of transparency in these investigative police stops. It leaves the city without the ability and awareness to make important changes that improve public safety in our communities.”
Supporters of the How Many Stops Act have been critical of how the mayor and the NYPD have campaigned against the legislation.
They have called their tactics misleading and have disputed the argument that officers documenting most encounters with the public will take them away from police work.
Supporters said the language in the legislation leaves the decision up to the NYPD to figure out the best way to implement the new documentation.
“The mayor has been lying about the How Many Stops. And the idea that this was too burdensome for officers is not based in fact,” said Samy Feliz, who’s brother was killed by the NYPD back in 2019.
Over the weekend, the NYPD invited members of the City Council to join officers in Harlem and the Bronx on a ride along to get a first hand look at how frequent these encounters are.
The hope is that the experience would flip some Council Members’ votes, but it is unclear if it was effective.
Once the council formally receives the mayor’s vetoes the City Council’s Committee on Public Safety and Council on Criminal Justice will then hold back-to-back hearings to vote on each bill.
Then we will hear from Council Speaker Adrienne Adams ahead of the vote to override the vetoes.
