New Yorkers—Democratic mayoral frontrunner Zohran Mamdani wants to essentially hand out free passes for misdemeanor crimes in the Big Apple.
According to New York Post, as a Queens assemblyman and the endorsed candidate of the NYC chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), Mamdani is championing a radical plan to halt enforcement of all misdemeanor offenses, while critics warn this could turn the city into a playground for petty crime and disorder.
Mamdani’s stance isn’t new; as an Albany lawmaker, he’s long questioned the purpose of prisons and pushed for lighter penalties on what he calls “non-violent offenses.” On the campaign trail, he’s urged the NYPD to ignore “non-serious crimes,” a position that raises eyebrows when you consider misdemeanors in New York include shoplifting under $1,000, drug possession, and even driving while intoxicated.
Back in 2021, at a protest outside the Manhattan DA’s office, Mamdani called violence an “artificial construction” and challenged how the state defines violent crime. “What violent crime is – is defined by the state,” he declared. Well, tell that to the store clerk facing a shoplifter who’s emboldened by the lack of consequences.
That same year, he demanded the elimination of cash bail and the closure of Rikers Island—promises he still touts on the campaign trail. The DSA platform, adopted in 2021, goes even further, labeling policing and detention as “instruments of class war” meant to oppress the working class. It’s a lofty ideology, but one that seems blind to the real-world chaos it could unleash.
The DSA’s agenda includes slashing arrests, gutting prosecutors’ budgets, abolishing cash bail, scrapping electronic monitoring, and ending imprisonment for parole violations. If Mamdani can’t change state laws as mayor, he could still nudge the NYPD to deprioritize certain arrests or lean on district attorneys to drop cases, much like Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg’s lenient policies on armed robberies and drug dealing.
Interestingly, Mamdani has softened his tone on defunding the police after the tragic Park Avenue massacre last month. Though he tweeted support for defunding in 2020, he now claims he’d keep the NYPD at its current size, redirecting officers to focus solely on “serious” crimes.
In a recent campaign video on X, he said, “Police have a critical role to play.” But legal policy expert Rafael Mangual of the Manhattan Institute isn’t buying the pivot, noting Mamdani hasn’t deeply explained this supposed change of heart.
Mangual added, “I don’t buy for a second that he is moderated on any of these policing questions.” It’s hard not to wonder if this is just campaign-season window dressing while the DSA’s core tenets of abolishing police and prisons remain unchanged.
Residents in areas like Manhattan’s 6th Precinct and Greenwich Village are already fed up with what they call a “revolving door of justice” under soft-on-crime policies. “They’re driving the city into a hole that’s never going to recover,” said Susan Ginsburg, a Greenwich Village local. Her frustration echoes a growing sentiment that ignoring misdemeanors could make daily life feel like a free-for-all.
Chelsea resident Alexander Kaplan didn’t hold back either, saying, “We’re already suffering from terrible crime.” He warned that even the perception of lax enforcement could embolden wrongdoers, a point that’s hard to dismiss when prosecutions under DA Bragg are already at historic lows.
Upper West Side resident Maria Danzilo, founder of One City Rising, lamented, “Everybody is so sick and tired of this.” She argued that New Yorkers just want a functional city without constant fear, a reasonable plea that seems at odds with Mamdani’s vision.
Republican mayoral candidate Curtis Sliwa offered a sharp critique, calling Mamdani’s plan an “EZ-Pass for criminals” that would let offenders repeatedly dodge accountability. “This will make the police even less effective at enforcement,” Sliwa warned. It’s a zinger that lands when you consider how misdemeanors, though not felonies, still disrupt community safety.
Even Governor Hochul, a fellow Democrat, has distanced herself from Mamdani’s ideas, refusing to endorse him or support defunding the police. Meanwhile, Mamdani has doubled down on other controversial stances, like pushing to legalize prostitution this week. It’s a mixed bag of priorities that leaves many questioning where public safety fits in.
