New York City Council Member Brad Lander and Brooklyn District Attorney Ken Thompson announced they are teaming up to create the Brooklyn Driver Accountability Task Force whose mission is to increase the prosecution of reckless driving in Brooklyn.
The initiative was formed out of a dialogue following the death of 14-year-old Kensington student Mohammed Naiem Uddin, a constituent of Lander’s, who lost his life in a hit-and-run crash on E. 7th Street and Caton Avenue last November.
Naiem was walking in the cross-walk, with the walk sign, when a driver failed to yield, hit and killed Naiem, and then fled the scene. Following Naiem’s death, Lander arranged for a meeting of Uddin’s family with Thompson and street safety advocates. In addition to moving forward with aggressive prosecution of the driver who killed Naiem, Thompson agreed to work with the group to form the new task force.
“We’ve got to do more to stop reckless driving from killing our kids,” said Lander. “That means changing the culture of tolerance for drivers who act recklessly behind the wheel. I’m looking forward to working with District Attorney Thompson, along with a wide-reaching community of passionate and dedicated advocates. The Driver Accountability Task Force will pilot innovative approaches that advance justice, cause drivers to think twice about their actions, and save lives. Together, we’ll make Brooklyn’s streets safer for all.”
The task force, made up of stakeholders from the NYPD, local and state governments, advocacy groups and criminal justice experts, will work to increase the prosecution of reckless driving in Brooklyn. The task force will focus on barriers to successful prosecution under current laws (including the Vision Zero laws passed by the City Council last year), advocate for new legislation to eliminate loopholes that allow drivers whose actions result in injury or death to escape punishment, and explore “restorative justice” programs that better support victims and lead to real change.
Among the advocacy organizations spearheading the task force are Transportation Alternatives and Families for Safe Streets.
“I look forward to working with Council Member Lander, Transportation Alternatives and Families for Safe Streets to improve the safety of pedestrians, bicyclists and motorists throughout Brooklyn,” said Thompson. “I am interested in their ideas on how to accomplish this and hope that our work together will result in lives being saved.”
