DiPietro Condemns DOCCS Memo as Political Cover for Prison Violence

Recent memo downgrades attacks by inmates as “harassment” or “disruptive behavior” instead of assaults. 

Assemblyman David DiPietro (R,C-East Aurora) today blasted Gov. Kathy Hochul’s latest Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS) memo as a cynical attempt to rewrite reality amid escalating violence inside New York’s correctional facilities. Since the governor signed the HALT Act in 2022, inmate-on-staff assaults have surged nearly 40%, while inmate-on-inmate violence has more than doubled. Despite these alarming trends, more than 2,000 National Guard troops remain stationed in prisons as DOCCS struggles to rebuild a depleted workforce. Rather than confronting the consequences of her policies, the governor is downgrading assaults on paper while conditions on the ground continue to deteriorate.

“The governor has totally hung correction officers out to dry. This is yet another vindictive move in her war against our correctional system, putting COs in greater danger just to save face over the surge in violence caused by the HALT Act. Our officers deserve leadership, not political cover-ups.”