Bail Reform to Blame for Supervised Release of Suspects in Long Island Body Parts Case, DA Says

A New York district attorney says bail reform is to blame after four people arrested in connection with human remains found in several places across Long Island’s Suffolk County were let out on supervised release. 

The remains of a 53-year-old man and 59-year-old woman have been found in three different locations, including in Bethpage State Park, Babylon, and West Babylon. The man and woman, whose names have not been publicly released, shared an address in Yonkers, authorities said.

The four suspects – Steven Brown, 44, Jeffrey Mackey, 38, and Amanda Wallace, 40, and Alexis Nieves, 33 — have been charged with first-degree hindering prosecution, tampering with physical evidence, and concealment of a human corpse.

The group was arrested after police discovered a meat cleaver, butcher knives, and traces of human remains at a home in Amityville shared by Wallace, Mackey and Brown. Nieves, meanwhile, is homeless.

However, because they have not been charged in the killing, the suspects were let out on supervised release until their next court appearances or until they face additional charges.

“Unfortunately, due to ‘Bail Reform’ passed by the New York State Legislature in 2019, charges relating to the mutilation and disposal of murdered corpses are no longer bail-eligible, meaning my prosecutors cannot ask for bail,” Suffolk County district attorney Ray Tierney said in a statement. “This is yet another absurd result thanks to ‘Bail Reform’ and a system where the Legislature in Albany substitutes their judgment for the judgment of our judges and the litigants in court.”

Tierney said he plans to work with local police to “resolve this investigation as soon as possible and implore our Legislature to make common sense fixes to this law.”

Under supervised release, the suspects were forced to surrender their passports and have been outfitted with GPS monitoring bracelets. They have been ordered to remain in Suffolk County.

However, Tierney warned last week that the suspects could soon have their GPS monitoring removed as the monitoring is considered a custodial condition under state law. Therefore, unless the suspects are indicted in the killing or the order is extended, the monitors could be removed.

“Because again, our nonsensical bail law considers GPS to be custody — GPS is clearly not custody — it is something we do in lieu of custody,” Tierney said.

Nieves and Mackey pleaded not guilty during a court appearance on Friday. The court ordered that both suspects continue wearing their GPS monitors until their next court date on March 19.

Brown and Wallace are due in court on Monday.

Suffolk County executive Ed Romaine was similarly critical of the suspects’ release.

“The failure of Albany’s Bail Laws has resulted in those charged with dismembering and placing body parts in our communities to walk free without posting any bail,” Romaine said. “This is outrageous, and completely unacceptable in a civilized society, when our prosecutors are handcuffed and those charged with this heinous crime are mandated by the state to go free.”

He said he will support any efforts to change the laws.

Police are still investigating the case and have not publicly said who they believe may be behind the killing, nor have they publicly identified a potential motive. However, the local ABC affiliate reports investigators are considering whether a love triangle was the motive.

Mackey’s attorney, John Halverson, told News 12 Long Island he believes an indictment in the case could be coming soon and said he imagines prosecutors are looking to upgrade charges for suspects in the case.