Monroe County District Attorney Mike Green and his office played a key role in these reports on guns. His office prosecuted two homicides that directly involved Joseph Place Gang members and associates, and a third homicide that was traced back to “Joseph Place” guns.
In the attached editorial District Attorney Green discusses the gun laws that his office deals with day in and day out. He also focuses on how Project Exile is helping investigators and prosecutors land the carriers of illegal guns behind bars.
Project Exile
By Mike Green
Monroe County District Attorney
http://www.monroecounty.gov/da-index.phpProject Exile continues to be an important part of our effort to reduce gun violence and make our community safer. Ten years ago, through the efforts of many leaders, including Gary Mervis, former District Attorney Howard Relin; former United States Attorney for the Western District of New York (and current Commissioner of the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services) Denise O’Donnell and others, Monroe County became the second jurisdiction in the country to participate in Project Exile.
Exile brought state and federal prosecutors and local, state and federal law enforcement agencies together to attack the scourge of illegally possessed guns contributing significantly to the violence in our community. Project Exile took advantage of the fact that at that time in many respects federal laws were much tougher on those illegally possessing guns than state law. Federal law generally carried a mandatory prison sentence for illegal possession of a gun, and state law did not. This resulted in the initial Exile slogan: You + Illegal Gun = Federal Prison. State and federal prosecutors did everything we could to make sure that anyone who possessed a loaded gun in our community went to prison.
Assistant United States Attorneys and Assistant District Attorneys meet weekly with law enforcement to review all the gun cases from the week and decide where the cases can best be prosecuted. Because of the difference between state and federal laws when Exile started, the decision was often made to prosecute gun cases in federal court. In addition, at these meetings, information is exchanged on the source of the crime guns, and strategies are developed to proactively get guns off the streets.
Recently, New York State laws have been changed and now mandate prison sentences for most people convicted of illegally possessing a gun. With this change, we are now able to get prison sentences in state court for illegal possession of a loaded gun that are roughly equivalent to the federal sentences for the same conduct. When Exile started, less than a third of all state gun cases resulted in prison sentences. By 2007, about two-thirds off all state gun convictions resulted in prison sentences. From 2003 to 2006 there was a 62% increase in the probability that a felony gun arrest would lead to a prison sentence in state court. The Exile message has evolved to You + Illegal Gun = Prison.
Another key component of Project Exile has been to public awareness campaign led by Gary Mervis and the Exile advisory board. Through billboards, commercials and other avenues, Gary and the board are constantly working to get the message out that the community and law enforcement must work together if we are going to make meaningful progress in our fight against gun violence.
Through the efforts of everyone involved in Project Exile, approximately 1,000 people have been convicted of gun crimes in state court, hundreds more in federal court, and hundreds of guns have been taken off the streets of Rochester. There can be no question that countless shootings and homicides have been prevented as a result of these efforts. Project Exile continues to be an outstanding example of law enforcement and the community working together to make our community safer.
