Coronavirus Jailbreak: NYC Frees 375 Inmates While Car Theft Skyrockets

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio (D) is bragging about the number of inmates he is releasing from prison in the midst of the Chinese coronavirus crisis while car theft skyrockets in the city.

While New York now has nearly 40,000 coronavirus cases and nearly 400 deaths, de Blasio bragged about the increasing number of inmates he is releasing, noting that by Friday morning, about 375 will have been released from city jails and prisons.

“Our city jail population is now 4,906. That’s the fewest detainees we’ve had in our jails since 1949,” de Blasio wrote on Twitter. “By tonight, the number of inmates released in response to the COVID-19 crisis will go from 200 up to 375. We will continue to address this in the safest way possible.”

At the same time, while New Yorkers are ordered to stay home, grand larceny auto has skyrocketed during the pandemic. In the last week, alone, grand larceny auto was up more than 51 percent across New York City compared to 2019 totals.

This week last year, there were less than 70 grand larceny auto cases. This year, there have been 103 grand larceny auto cases from March 16 to March 22. Over the past month, grand larceny auto cases are up nearly 80 percent in New York City compared to the same time in 2019.

Aside from de Blasio’s freeing of inmates deemed “non-violent,” New York’s bail reform law has made it impossible for police and judges to hold suspects in jail before their trial if they have been charged with a series of crimes considered “non-violent.”

Those crimes include:

• 2nd degree Burglary of a residence
• 2nd degree Burglary as a Hate Crime
• 3rd degree Burglary of a commercial building
• 3rd degree Burglary as a Hate Crime
• 2nd degree Robbery aided by another person
• 2nd degree Robbery as a Hate Crime
• 3rd degree Robbery
• Criminal sale of a controlled substance (multiple counts)
• Using a child to commit a controlled substance crime
• Criminal possession of a controlled substance (multiple counts)
• Criminal sale of a controlled substance in or near a school
• Criminal injection of a controlled substance into another person
• Criminal sale of a controlled substance to a child
• Criminal sale of a prescription for a controlled substance by a pharmacist
• Criminal possession or creation of Methamphetamines
• 3rd degree Assault
• 3rd degree Assault as a Hate Crime
• Reckless Assault of a child by a day care provider
• Reckless Assault of a child
• Stalking (multiple counts)
• Stalking as a Hate Crime (multiple counts)
• Vehicular Assault (multiple counts)
• Aggravated Vehicular Assault
• Aggravated Assault on a child under 11 years-old
• Aggravated Assault on a child under 11 years-old as a Hate Child
• Menacing (multiple counts)
• Menacing as a Hate Crime (multiple counts)
• Reckless Endangerment (multiple counts)
• Promoting a suicide attempt
• 1st degree Stalking while committing a sex offense
• Criminal Obstruction of Breathing
• Criminally Negligent Homicide
• 2nd degree Vehicular Manslaughter
• Aggravated Vehicular Manslaughter
• 2nd degree Manslaughter
• Unlawful Imprisonment (multiple counts)
• Unlawful Imprisonment as a Hate Crime (multiple counts)
• Aggravated Labor Trafficking
• Custodial Interference (multiple counts)
• Substitution of children
• Coercion (multiple counts)
• Coercion as a Hate Crime (multiple counts)
• Criminal Trespass (multiple counts)
• Criminal Trespass as a Hate Crime (multiple counts)
• Possession of burglar’s tools
• Unlawful possession of a police scanner
• Criminal Mischief (multiple counts)
• Criminal Mischief as a Hate Crime (multiple counts)
• Criminal Tampering (multiple counts)
• Cemetery Desecration (multiple counts)
• Aggravated Cemetery Desecration (multiple counts)
• Reckless Endangerment of property
• Tampering with a consumer product (multiple counts)
• Graffiti
• Possession of Graffiti tools
• 3rd degree Arson
• 4th degree Arson
• 5th degree Arson
• 3rd degree Arson as a Hate Crime
• 4th degree Arson as a Hate Crime
• 5th degree Arson as a Hate Crime
• Grand Larceny (multiple counts)
• Grand Larceny at a Hate Crime (multiple counts)
• Aggravated Grand Larceny of an ATM
• Petit Larceny
• Petit Larceny as a Hate Crime
• Computer Tampering (multiple counts)
• Computer Trespass
• Unauthorized use of a computer
• Unlawful duplication of computer materials (multiple counts)
• Welfare Fraud (multiple counts)
• Criminal use of a public benefits card (multiple counts)
• Criminal possession of a public benefits card (multiple counts)
• Unauthorized use of a vehicle (multiple counts)
• Auto stripping (multiple counts)
• Theft of services
• Unauthorized use of a credit card
• Jostling
• Fraudulent Accosting
• Criminal Possession of Stolen Property (multiple counts)
• Forgery (multiple counts)
• Criminal possession of a forged instrument (multiple counts)
• Criminal possession of forgery devices
• Criminal possession of a Vehicle ID Number
• Forgery of a Vehicle ID Number
• Falsifying business records (multiple counts)
• Tampering with public records (multiple counts)
• Offering a false instrument for filing (multiple counts)
• Insurance Fraud (multiple counts)
• Health insurance fraud (multiple counts)
• Criminal diversion of prescription medications (multiple counts)
• Commercial bribery (multiple counts)
• Rent Gouging (multiple counts)
• Residential mortgage fraud (multiple counts)
• Aggravated identity theft (multiple counts)
• Bribery (multiple counts)
• Perjury (multiple counts)
• Bail jumping (multiple counts)
• Obstructing governmental administration (multiple counts)
• Obstructing governmental administration with a self-defense spray device
• Killing a Police Dog or Police Horse
• Obstructing emergency medical services
• Obstructing governmental services with a bomb
• Escape (multiple counts)
• Promoting prison contraband (multiple counts)
• Resisting arrest
• Hindering prosecution (multiple counts)
• Making a false sworn statement
• Bribing a witness
• Receiving a bribe as a witness
• Bribing a juror
• Receiving a bribe as a juror
• Providing a juror with a gratuity
• Tampering with a juror (multiple counts)
• Tampering with physical evidence
• Compounding a crime
• 1st degree Criminal Contempt – refusing to be sworn in as a witness
• 2nd degree Criminal Contempt
• ALL Gambling offenses
• ALL Prostitution offenses
• Providing indecent material in minors (multiple counts)
• Riot (multiple counts)
• Criminal Anarchy
• Harassment (multiple counts)
• Harassment as a Hate Crime (multiple counts)
• Aggravated Harassment (multiple counts)
• Aggravated Harassment as a Hate Crime (multiple counts)
• Aggravated Harassment of an employee by an inmate
• Criminal nuisance (multiple counts)
• Falsely reporting a crime
• Pointing a laser at an aircraft (multiple counts)
• Harming a service animal (multiple counts)
• Public lewdness
• Illegal eavesdropping
• Dissemination of unlawful surveillance (multiple counts)
• Non-support of a child (multiple counts)
• Endangering the welfare of a child
• Assisting in female genital mutilation
• Endangering the welfare of an incompetent or physically disabled person
• Endangering the welfare of a vulnerable elderly person
• Endangering the welfare of a disabled person (multiple counts)
• Promoting an obscene sexual performance by a child
• Possession of an obscene sexual performance by a child
• Promoting a sexual performance by a child
• Possessing a sexual performance by a child
• 4th degree Criminal possession of a weapon
• Criminal possession of a weapon on school grounds
• Criminal possession of a firearm
• 3rd degree Criminal possession of a weapon
• Criminal purchase or disposal of a weapon
• Unlawfully wearing a body vest
• Unlawfully fleeing a police officer in a vehicle (multiple counts)
• Enterprise corruption
• Money Laundering (multiple counts)
• Money Laundering in support of terrorism (multiple counts)
• Corrupting the government (multiple counts)
• Criminal solicitation (multiple counts)
• Conspiracy (multiple counts)
• Conspiracy as a Hate Crime (multiple counts)
• Criminal facilitation (multiple counts)

The bail reform law allows accused criminals to inspect their own crime scenes with their attorneys and mandates that the prosecution hand over all the names of witnesses set to testify against a defendant within two weeks of their arrest.

That specific provision has already been blamed for the murder of a 36-year-old witness who was expected to testify against MS-13 gang members in a criminal trial. The murder occurred after the witness’s name was handed over to attorneys representing the accused.

Federally, a group of 14 Republican and Democrat Senators has pleaded with the Department of Justice to free felons in federal prison who are 60-years-old or older. Their letter claims this particular group of felons are at risk of contracting the coronavirus in prison and thus should be given early release.

John Binder is a reporter for Breitbart News. Follow him on Twitter at @JxhnBinder.