To curb NYC subway violence, Gov. Kathy Hochul seeks to expand mental health laws

ALBANY — Gov. Kathy Hochul on Friday proposed to expand decades-old laws — in response to subway violence — to give law enforcement and the courts greater authority to send people to mental health facilities if they pose a danger.

“The recent surge in violent crimes in our public transit system cannot continue — and we need to tackle this crisis head-on,” Hochul said in a written statement Friday. “Many of these horrific incidents have involved people with serious untreated mental illness, the result of a failure to get treatment to people who are living on the streets and are disconnected from our mental health care system.

“We have a duty to protect the public from random acts of violence, and the only fair and compassionate thing to do is to get our fellow New Yorkers the help they need,” Hochul said.

Hochul proposes to change “involuntary commitment” laws dating to the 1960s and the 1999 Kendra’s Law that allows judges to require people who are detained as dangerous to themselves or others to undergo psychiatric care. Mental health advocates have supported the measures as an effective and humane way to treat people who are mentally ill.

The governor didn’t release details of her proposals or bills that would be submitted to the State Legislature. She will provide more information on this and other legislative proposals for the 2025 session in her budget proposal to the legislature later this month, a spokesman said.

Hochul’s action is in response to several high profile violent incidents in the New York City subway system. They include a woman who was set on fire Dec. 22, a fatal stabbing, a man pushed in front of a train and nonfatal stabbings this month.

Glenn Liebman, executive director of the Mental Health Association in New York State, raised concerns about Hochul's proposal in an interview Friday.

“Tweaking existing laws is not the answer,” he said. “We sensationalize mental health issues as the sole reason for what happens and that’s not true at all ... We have to wait for more specifics to find out what we are talking about, but by and large, I think we should be more focused on community services and supports.”

Liebman said Hochul has done a good job of increasing funding for community programs serving people with mental health issues after they leave hospitals or law enforcement detention, including an additional $400 million in the current budget. But the programs aren’t fully operating, in part because of staffing shortages in what he said are underpaid jobs.

These programs ensure people with mental health issues are not a risk to themselves or others when they reenter society, but “bad discharges” result when there is a delay in getting medication and housing to outpatients, Liebman said.

“For 30 years our community has been dramatically underfunded in workforce hours,” he said. “Until we have a comprehensive response, bad discharges are going to continue to happen. So we have to have a full look ... a critical review to see where are the failings in the system.”

He said there is also a concern for those with mental illness who may be unnecessarily deemed a danger and forced into a secure care facility.

“We’d have to see what the specifics are, but there is always that fear whenever you tweak existing laws like Kendra’s Law surrounding forced treatment,” Liebman said. “So, we have to look at that.”

Last month, Hochul sent National Guard troops into the subways to address the concerns of riders about rising violence. Hochul is trying to get New Yorkers, including Long Islanders, to return to using the subway after the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in a sharp drop in ridership.

The state’s congestion pricing plan is scheduled to start Sunday, with a goal of sending more people into mass transit, including the subways. Motor vehicle drivers will be charged a base fee of $9 to enter the most congested parts of Manhattan, in an effort to reduce emissions that contribute to global warming and reduce air pollution. The fees will be used to fund massive renovations and repairs of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which runs the subways, as well as buses and commuter railroads.

By Michael Gormley

michael.gormley@newsday.com@GormleyAlbany

Michael Gormley has worked for Newsday since 2013, covering state government, politics and issues. He has covered Albany since 2001.