The State Assembly gave final passage to a bill on Monday that would create a commission to investigate prosecutorial misconduct.

State Senate

The commission would be authorized to investigate and review complaints against prosecutors specifically. The panel would have subpoena power and the ability to request documents and information in any case of misconduct. Its decisions would be made available to the public and compiled in an annual report to the legislature, governor and Court of Appeals.

The District Attorneys Association of the State of New York lobbied against the bill, calling it unnecessary and possibly unconstitutional.

“This is something that we need to do in this state and I stand here today on behalf of the wrongfully convicted,” Assemblyman Nick Perry said during the vote.

Some local DAs also took their shots at the proposal.

"This legislation is a mistake and quite likely unconstitutional,” Staten Island District Attorney Michael McMahon said in a statement. “It adds an unwieldy and unfunded layer of bureaucracy when defendants already enjoy an unparalleled right to appeal.”

Opponents of the measure have argued that a system already exists to discipline prosecutors in New York state. Each Appellate Division has a grievance committee that reviews complaints against attorneys in New York state and has the power to censure, suspend, or disbar them. Those committees are composed of both attorneys and nonattorneys and appointed by the court.

within 30 days provides Tuesday

The legislation does nothing to empower the state's grievance committees to improve their investigations of misconduct, McNamara said. The bill's supporters, including its sponsor in the State Senate, Sen. John DeFrancisco, R-Syracuse, have argued that the committees haven't done enough to investigate misconduct when presented with it.