In March 2019, Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez announced his plan for a groundbreaking initiative to transform Brooklyn’s justice system into a progressive model designed to keep Brooklyn safe and strengthen community trust by ensuring fairness and equal justice for all.

This plan follows months of consultations with dedicated committees made up of reform experts, defense attorneys, service providers, law enforcement, formerly incarcerated individuals, clergy and others.

Trellis has been involved in this conversation both through Faith in New York and now through our work as part of the Brooklyn Justice Advocacy Coalition.

Recently, DA Gonzalez agreed to participate in a community hall to talk about how this plan will work going forward and 4 of our Trellis Crew were there and here is what they learned

At the event I listened and learned about the Justice system in New York. The Brooklyn DA talked about how he has lots of knowledge on how to improve of justice system because he himself has come from a harsh environment and the steps we can take to make sure that we don’t only feel safe but acknowledge that there are more appropriate and available steps we can take besides throwing the prosecutor in prison for small-time crimes that can be prevented. Although people might be prosecuted for their crimes that doesn’t always mean that the place that they’re going to is for the better just because a person goes to jail for a crime they have caused does not mean you might feel as safe or that it really deals with the issue. Lots of people especially know today that our justice system is extremely biased and incorrect. When it comes to people of color although New York City crime rates have dropped dramatically within the last couple years there’s still a lot to grow from today we talked about different alternatives that can be used first besides sending someone to jail like if they have an opioid addiction the best solution will not be to send them to jail but instead get them help as soon as possible.Communities with more wealth and more interaction should be involved in the help of all the communities to make a bigger better change. We all need to be involved positively to help change our community for the better so we can lessen the chances for people around us for jail penalty.
Veronica Taylor is a 10th grader at The High School for Human Services and Health Professions and a member of the Trellis Crew
What I learned from the community conversation is that justice and dignity and also safety are very important. Not just in out family household but in out community itself. The safety of our community is so important because everyone deserves to feel safe and feel like their able to walk in and out of the neighborhood without getting hurt.
These questions were asked to all those in attendance
What does safety mean to you?
What it means to me is what parents are thinking when their children when they are outside doing Lord knows what. That's why having police around in the community is a good thing. If shooting of gang activity is happening and a child is in the way.

What does your safety cost other people?
Coming from me, it all depends on how the person is or their actions. I really think my safety doesn't cost much unless the people such as close friends and family or loved ones.
Felix Acevedo is a 10th grader and resident of the Farragut Houses in Brooklyn and a member of the Trellis Crew
What I captured from the community conversation is that justice, dignity and safety is very important. Not just within a family household but in our community. The safety in our community is do important because everyone deserves to feel safe and feel like their able to walk in and out of there neighborhood without getting hurt.

What does safety mean to you?
What safety means to me is when parents aren't afraid of letting there kids go out to chill and play with there friends because there are people shooting out side and causing havac.

What does your safety cost other people?
Personally, I think it depends on race or even wealth. I think my safety doesn't cost much unless it's close friends or loved ones because I'm Hispanic and the neighborhood I live in my community lives right next to a gunshot, the police don't come until at least 3 hour's pass by. But when my community have a block party the police try to shut it down.

How can we co create safety?
I think one way we can co create safety s by coming together as a community and getting to know each other instead of making enemies is what causes people to harm others another way we can co create safety is by working things out when conflict occurs.

Safety is something we should all have. We all deserve to feel safe in our community. Safety should not only be about my community, but everywhere else.
Priscilla Ortiz is a 10th grader from the Farragut Houses in Brooklyn and a member of the Trellis Crew
Here are the facts, The New York Police Department recorded 289 murders in 2018, three fewer than the 292 recorded in 2017. Mayor Bill de Blasio said it was the fewest number of homicides in nearly 70 years. The district attorney made it his business to let us all know how important it is to him for us to lower our rate of people being sentenced to jail, Such as the school to prison pipeline. The District Attorney was speaking from his heart, as you almost feel his professional empathetic statements as he continued to concentrate on how much the borough of Brooklyn has changed throughout the decades. The best example he used was there not being a murdering or shooting in park slope in over 15 years. Although there still may be danger in other part of Brooklyn, Gentrification and other assets such as the attractions of the Barclays center, and the focus more on community has allowed the dangerous parts that are left to calm down. It’s all apart of a bigger vision. To help Brooklyn, to help New York become a safer place for all to come to. What was interesting about this meeting was that when you come into the building you have several different white folks approaching, staring, and making eye contact with me that ultimately gave me the feeling that my presence wasn’t expected at this meeting. But once you go in the church where the meeting as taking place, and you sit and realize it’s being organized and hosted by African Americans. For some strange reason it felt comforting. Watching The people of my culture speak so openly and feel so comfortable in putting together this event where a church full of white folks can feel like the message of trying to avoid throwing people in prison for crimes that are avoidable, that’s a good community.
Khalil Baxter is a senior at City-As-School High School and a member of the Trellis Crew

A number of counties in the state are actually pushing back on some of the reforms that district attorney is advocating for including massive and necessary reform around the bail system. Hearing from the voices most deeply impacted and harmed by the criminal justice system is vital is seeing these changes through and helps better advocate for the changes needs to make sure that the courts work for everyone.