Source: United States Department of Justice
Watch the entire press conference here.
Good afternoon. I’m Amanda Houle, Criminal Division Chief for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York.
When our US Attorney Jay Clayton took his office a year ago, he asked me and other prosecutors from our Office what we could do that would have the most positive and immediate impact on New York families. We all agreed on a top priority: combat gun violence and get criminals who use guns off our streets.
Our mission is simple: to aggressively use our federal tools and resources to support Commissioner Tisch and our federal partners to get criminals with guns off of our streets, and to keep them off of our streets after they are arrested.
- We are charging more violent criminals, and we are bringing those charges more swiftly.
- We are presenting evidence of dangerousness so that these defendants remain in federal custody after their arrest.
- We are sticking to tough charges.
- And we are seeking tough sentences for those who endanger our communities.
Our partnership in this effort is showing real results. Reported violent crime is down, especially murders, which have been some of the lowest recorded numbers in city history. We are proud to help deliver that result for New Yorkers. And our work is not done.
As we head into the summer, we are in lockstep with the NYPD. Prosecutors from our Office are on call 24/7. And we are monitoring every single gun arrest in the Southern District to ensure that, whenever possible, federal charges are brought against those who are driving gun violence in our city. That includes repeat gun offenders, gang members, and shooters.
Just yesterday, through that process, we identified an individual with 4 prior felony convictions who was found in possession of a loaded gun, hundreds of rounds of ammunition, and hundreds of methamphetamine pills who we have charged today.[i]
Also, yesterday, in partnership with the NYPD, as part of a takedown of a gang that terrorized the Sotomayor Houses in the Bronx, we conducted arrests and seized five firearms from a gang member’s apartment.[ii]
And in just the last few weeks with our state and federal partners, we have helped to take off the streets, and keep off the streets:
- A defendant with a prior robbery conviction who was caught after firing shots in broad daylight on a city street.[iii]
- Multiple prior felons who have tried to bring guns into our subways;[iv] and
- A defendant with 4 prior felonies who tried to sell more than a dozen guns and hundreds of rounds of ammunition in the Bronx.[v]
These are just a few recent examples. We are combining real-time intelligence sharing, coordinated investigative efforts, and aggressive prosecution strategies to target our resources on the individuals who pose the greatest threat to public safety and remove them from our streets.
I’ll share one more example. In August of last year, New Yorker Robin Wright was standing on an East Harlem corner in the middle of the day. Ms. Wright was 69 years old and resting on her walker. That is when she was shot and killed after a spray of bullets from a machine gun was fired on a New York City street. The perpetrators ran, and we immediately began our work around the clock with the NYPD and our federal partners. Within days, the shooter and an accomplice were in custody, where they remain. They were convicted, and the shooter will spend decades in federal custody. This is our partnership with the NYPD and our commitment to New Yorkers in action.
No street, park, school zone, housing community, or subway station in this City should be plagued by criminals with guns. We are proud of the strides made in partnership with Commissioner Tisch to combat gun violence, and we are here to double down on our commitment to the work ahead. That is what every New Yorker deserves.
Thank you to Commissioner Tisch for her leadership of the NYPD and partnership with our Office. We stand among all of the public servants up here today proud to serve the people of New York.
[i] Alexey Sokolov
[iii] May: we charged a defendant (Arthur Saunders, who had a prior robbery conviction) who fired multiple shots at a victim in broad daylight on East 183rd Street, hitting the victim in the legs; following the shooting, agents recovered the gun and nearly 150 rounds of ammunition from the defendant’s apartment.
[iv] U.S. v. William Ortiz, (Steinbach) (NYPD): Triggerlock indictment against a defendant with seven prior felony convictions who attempted to carry a firearm into a Bronx subway station. U.S. v. Farrell Tucker (Savino)
[v] MARCUS RESPRESS charged in May