By Julie Shapiro
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
LOWER MANHATTAN — Tourists who buy knockoff handbags on Canal Street might escape without a year in jail.
Councilwoman Margaret Chin is already backing off her push for tough penalties, including jail time, for the counterfeit shoppers in Chinatown, her chief of staff said Thursday.
"We're definitely getting some pushback," Jake Itzkowitz said just a few hours after Chin introduced her legislation in the City Council. "I think [the bill] may not stay in its current form. The year of jail time may change."
The bill would make it a Class A Misdemeanor for customers to buy an item that they ought to know is fake, punishable by a $1,000 fine and up to a year in jail.
Other Class A Misdemeanors in New York include some types of sexual abuse, identity theft and criminal impersonation of a public servant.
Itzkowitz spoke at a 1st Precinct Community Council meeting Thursday night and urged members of the council, who support the legislation in its current form, to write letters of support.
Itzkowitz added that he didn't necessarily expect the police to send anyone to jail for buying a knockoff pocketbook, but he hoped that the threat of a punishment would serve as a deterrent.
Despite Itzkowitz's remarks at the meeting, a spokeswoman for Chin sent a statement Friday to DNAinfo saying the councilwoman "is in no way backing down" from the bill.
The bill calls for a civil or misdemeanor penalty, which is standard for Public Safety amendments to the Administrative Code, the statement continued.
"The bill is drafted in this way to allow discretion on the part of the NYPD and the involvement other agencies," Chin said in the statement. "Ultimately, every bill submitted by the City Council is required to go through the hearing process where suggestions are made and potential modifications are made. This is the democratic process. Why would I back down from a bill I just introduced yesterday.”
Capt. Edward Winski, commanding officer of the 1st Precinct, said Chin's legislation would be a helpful tool to bring Canal Street's illegal vending under control. Asked if he would devote police resources to going after tourists, he said, "If it becomes a law, we enforce all laws in New York City."
Winski also updated the community council on some recent developments on Canal Street.
The NYPD worked with the city to get two payphones removed from Canal Street near Church Street, and they are working on getting rid of three more, Winski said.
"They provide cover and concealment for the bad guys," Winski said of the phone kiosks.
The NYPD also recently seized about 500 fake pocketbooks and wallets from 301 W. Broadway, a building that has a record of being used to store counterfeit goods, Winski said.
In the past 13 months since the NYPD started a coordinated crackdown on illegal vending on Canal Street, police have made 1,876 arrests, issued 6,341 summonses and have confiscated more than 28,000 counterfeit handbags, Winski said.
"The conditions have improved, but they're not perfect," Winski said. "We'll continue fighting."
