Ben Ostrer would rather talk about reform
By Ginny Privitar
CHESTER — Ben Ostrer doesn't want to talk about the Charles F. Crimi Memorial Award he received from the New York State Bar Association last month as Outstanding Private Criminal Defense Attorney in New York State.
The Chester resident, who has been named as a “super lawyer” every year since 2009, says he’s in the paper often enough. What he does want to talk about is the need for reform in criminal defense laws, and the growing number of wrongful convictions for all kinds of reasons.
In some cases, for example, confessions have been coerced from the accused — even when the defendant lacks the mental capacity to understand what is going on.
Ostrer sees the greatest need for reform in three areas. The first is in what is known as "discovery," to make a level playing field for defense attorneys and prosecutors. In the discovery process, evidence from one side is presented to the other for a fair examination of the facts. It gives the defense attorney an opportunity to look at the prosecution’s evidence. But the district attorney may have information he or she is not required to provide to the defense until a jury is selected or already hearing the case. Getting crucial information late deprives a defense attorney time to fully investigate new information.
“You would think with the advent of DNA, the frequency of wrongful convictions would" be reduced, he said. "But labs get things wrong — and that’s with people who are fortunate enough to have forensic evidence. What about those who do not have forensic evidence?”
Ostrer said an annual report from National Registry of Exoneration says there have been more than 1733 wrongful convictions since 1989, and 149 wrongful convictions overturned in 2015 alone. The report was also cited in a New York Times article, “Prisoner Exonerated; Prosecutor Exposed.” For every exoneration, Ostrer said, there are untold numbers of innocent people who never get the chance.
“The frequency with which we convict innocent people should be shocking to everyone, and a call to legislators," Ostrer said.
“Know how many people’s lives were ruined with marijuana convictions?” he asked.
If New York had expungement, records of minor crimes could be erased.
“It took years to realize the horror of the Rockefeller drug laws, and now we’re doing it again,” Ostrer said. “Congress is now looking at mandatory minimum sentences. That takes discretion away from judges."
Finally, Ostrer would like to see the age at which children are prosecuted as adults raised from 16. New York is one of only two states that prosecutes 16-year-olds as adults.
"We now know from science that a young person’s brain is not fully developed at that age, and they should not be prosecuted as adults," he said. "It’s politically correct to be opposed to any legislation that may be viewed as aiding defendants. But if we’re to truly have a constitutionally sound system, there must be changes to the state of the law here in New York."
Besides his private practice, Ostrer serves as attorney for the Village of Harriman. He is also director of the Legal Aid Society of Orange County.
About the award he'd rather not talk about, Ostrer admits he’s “flattered at the award given the company it put me in — some of the most highly regarded defense lawyers.”
But rather then be impressed, he'd rather have you call your legislator.