Edeedson "Joshy" Cin Jr.'s aunt said Friday she is holding on to the hope that a new transparency law bearing her nephew's name will spare other families the kind of limbo they faced after his Christmas-night killing. Lawmakers, police officials and Cin's relatives gathered in Lindenhurst as sponsors worked to push the measure through its first round of committee review. The proposal would require businesses to hand over key surveillance footage far more quickly than many do now.
What the bill would do
The Senate version, S9201, would require any business that has surveillance video tied to a felony investigation to immediately release that footage to law enforcement once officers make a formal written request, according to the bill text filed with the New York State Senate. The measure would also require businesses to take reasonable steps to make sure that footage is not erased or destroyed.
The proposal limits any internal legal review delay to 24 hours, allows courts to temporarily block disclosure in narrow situations, and authorizes civil penalties of up to $100,000 per incident. Sponsors say those preservation rules and stiff fines are aimed at preventing crucial evidence from vanishing in the early hours of a violent-crime investigation, when every minute matters.
Family and lawmakers press the measure
Assemblyman Kwani O'Pharrow and State Sen. Monica Martinez joined Cin relatives in Lindenhurst on Friday to rally support for the Edeedson "Joshy" Cine9 Jr. Transparency Act. The family argues that delays in accessing store video after the killing left them desperate for answers.
"Anything could have happened within that timeframe," Cine9's aunt Whenshell Thelusma told Patch. Sponsors say the bill contains protections for employees who cooperate with police and that it has attracted bipartisan backing in Albany.
Police and store differ on how quickly footage was shared
Suffolk County Police Commissioner Kevin Catalina has said that delays in obtaining the store's surveillance footage "hampered" detectives as they tried to make an arrest, according to NBC New York. From the department's perspective, those early hours were slowed down by corporate process.
CVS tells a different story. The company says it cooperated with investigators, letting officers review video in the store the night of the attack and exporting hours of footage overnight. News 12 published timestamped photos that CVS provided, showing officers looking over the security video on site.
Arrest and the role of video
Authorities arrested and later indicted John Pilaccio in early January. Prosecutors say he admitted to the killing after detectives confronted him with the store surveillance video, according to Fox News. Pilaccio is charged with first-degree murder and related offenses and remains in custody as the case moves through Suffolk County Court.
Prosecutors and the district attorney's office say that surveillance footage was central to securing the indictment, a point the family and lawmakers now use to underline how high the stakes are when evidence access is delayed.
How the law would change evidence handling
If it becomes law, the bill would require businesses to preserve surveillance footage while investigators prepare a formal written request, according to the language filed with the New York State Senate. It would also prohibit retaliation against employees who comply with law enforcement requests.
Sponsors argue that the combination of preservation requirements and heavy civil penalties is meant to discourage corporate policies that favor lengthy internal reviews over fast cooperation with police. The bill also calls for an annual compliance report to be submitted to the governor and the legislature, keeping some public pressure on agencies and businesses to follow the rules.
Where the bill stands
The Assembly companion bill, A09470, lists Assemblyman Kwani O'Pharrow as the lead sponsor and has been sent to committee, according to public records on LegiScan. Local coverage reports that a Suffolk-area hearing was scheduled as part of that review, and sponsors are pushing for committee action before the legislative calendar tightens, News 12 reported.
Cine9's family says having a transparency law carry his name would be a powerful part of his legacy. His aunt told supporters on Friday that "to have the transparency act carry his name is very meaningful," according to Patch. Sponsors say the next rounds of committee work will show whether lawmakers can thread the needle between what investigators want, what businesses will accept and the privacy safeguards that civil liberties groups watch closely.
