MIDDLETOWN – Crime is up some 15 percent in the City of Middletown for the first time in 10 years and Mayor Joseph DeStefano puts much of the blame on some components of the state’s bail reforms enacted just a few years ago.
DeStefano, a Democrat like the majority in the state legislature and the governor, said persons who commit petty crimes should not be jailed for extensive periods of time pre-trial.
But, he is very concerned about repeat offenders.
“Those who oppose changing the law argue that these types of arrests are a nuisance and no big deal. Well, it is a big deal,” the mayor said. “When a person walks into your store repeatedly and steals. It is a big deal when a store clerk is beaten to a pulp with fists. It is a big deal when you make arrests or several offenders charged with motor vehicle theft, who are then immediately released back into our community only to steal more vehicles that very same week.”
DeStefano raised the issue in his annual State of the City address Tuesday night.
He had much positive news about major infrastructure upgrades and projects in varying stages of planning and development, noting the economy of the city is expanding.
