Less than a month from the end of the legislative session, lawmakers and advocates are working to get their priorities across the finish line.

For some Democrats in the majority, one priority is sentencing reform. It comes amid ongoing and sometimes heated debates over criminal justice reforms.

Melanie Bishop is a member of the Center for Community Alternatives. She is also the mother of an incarcerated son.

“I started this journey for my son Zack,” she told a group fellow mothers of incarcerated people and mothers who have been incarcerated themselves, pushing the package of bills one day after Mother’s Day. The rally was convened, in part, to underscore their argument that New York’s criminal justice system puts an undue burden on mothers.

One bill in the package, the Second Look Act, would allow judges to review and reconsider sentences. Advocates say the current system does not account for rehabilitation, and often separates families for longer than they feel is justified.

“It would allow those who are incarcerated for long sentences to petition the judge for a reconsideration of their sentence based on who they are today. It goes into effect after 10 years of serving time,” she said.

Another bill included is the Earned Time Act, which would expand laws that allow incarcerated people to earn reductions in their sentences.

“I don’t believe accountability and compassion have to be mutually exclusive,” she said. “I believe that you can hold somebody accountable for their actions and still restore them to their communities.”

State Senator Jeremy Cooney sponsors the Earned Time Act and told Spectrum News 1 that it is “workforce development-focused,” encouraging individuals to participate in educational and vocational programming in order to earn those sentencing reductions.

“No one is getting a free ride here,” he said. “What they are getting is the opportunity to better themselves, but the really goal here is that we are changing the culture of our state prisons. We are focusing on self-improvement, rehabilitation.”

Republican State Senator Anthony Palumbo blasted the package Monday. He argued that Democrats have “abandoned victims” and lost sight of the reason for incarceration in the first place.

“When you don’t comply with the rules of society depending on the gravity of the offense you get removed from society and it’s a pretty basic thing,” he said. “You have a penalty to pay. Hopefully, you rehabilitate yourself and when you come out, you’re back on track.”

Palumbo also argued that a sentence is a contract between an individual who is convicted of a crime and the courts, and should not be something that is open to be renegotiated.

“It’s expected that when you’re in prison, you’re going to rehabilitate yourself,” he said. “You shouldn’t get extra credit for not misbehaving while you’re incarcerated, period. Your job is to rehabilitate yourself, become a productive member of society, and follow the rules.”

Also included in the package is a bill to eliminate mandatory minimums.