04.30.10 Progress through Partnership
Testimony Before the Illinois House Appropriations Committee on Criminal Justice Reform
On April 26, 2010 Malcolm Rich, Executive Director of Chicago Appleseed Fund for Justice and the Chicago Council of Lawyers testified at the Illinois House Appropriations Committee hearing in Chicago.
Chaired by Representatives Karen Yarbrough, Eddie Washington, and Connie Howard, the purpose of the hearing was to solicit ideas to improve the criminal justice system while saving taxpayer money.
Our testimony focused on the Chicago Appleseed/Chicago Council proposals to establish a diversion section within Cook County's Criminal Justice System and to implement a stationhouse adjustment program to keep non- violent offenders out of the criminal justice system.
Chicago Appleseed and the Chicago Council of Lawyers Call for a Restructuring of the Criminal Justice System - with a focus on Deferral, Diversion, Integration, Accountability
Based on a comprehensive research study of Chicago's felony courtrooms by Chicago Appleseed, the Chicago Council of Lawyers and Chicago Appleseed believe that having treatment programs available for individuals having drug and mental health issues is only part of the solution. The criminal justice system has become the de facto major provider of drug treatment and mental health services in Cook County, and so must be restructured so that it can effectively and efficiently link individuals with needed treatment.
The Circuit Court of Cook County can bring about a reduction in the prison population by utilizing its judges and existing resources to divert non-violent adult defendants into treatment programs.
The criminal justice system can use stationhouse adjustments to defer non-violent adult offenders so they never enter the system in the first place.
Needs: Increase effectiveness of the criminal justice system: Incarcerate dangerous offenders and rehabilitate non- violent offenders. and Decrease costs associated with criminal justice system-both economic costs to taxpayers and social costs to individuals and society.
Goals: Reduce jail/prison population Reduce participant contacts with court system Reduce long-term negative effects of court system contact Encourage and facilitate access to desired services
Focus: Adult non-violent offenders involved with drugs, theft, prostitution, mental health issues, as well as veterans.
Introduction
In December 2007, Chicago Appleseed released a report on Chicago's Felony Courts, outlining sources of inefficiency and injustice in the system and recommending changes for improvement. Based on intensive research involving court watching, expert interviews, and surveying, this report attempts to evaluate the criminal justice system practically with an emphasis on achieving cost-efficiency in the pursuit of justice. Chicago Appleseed recommends a focus on social welfare through better utilization of existing resources. One of the main sources of injustice presented by this report is the misallocation of vast amounts of law enforcement resources to address minor drug cases. Members of the Public Defender's Office, State's Attorney's Office, private bar, and the Judiciary all cited the overwhelming prevalence of drug cases in the criminal system as a source of the problem with the current system.
While illegal drug use and its impact on other crimes need to be addressed by the system, the fact is there are scarce resources available for law enforcement. Imprisonment is a costly and ineffective method of imposing punishment for these crimes. For each person put in jail, money and time must be expended at every step of the process - from arrest, to trial, to incarceration. Chicago Appleseed found that minor possession charges could be dealt with in a more cost-effective manner. Ultimately, funding to combat minor drug offences diverts funding away from upholding justice in other areas.
Moreover, many of these cases are simple possession cases, where defendants are arrested for low-level possession and consequently charged with a felony. This combination of a high volume of drug cases and insufficient resources often results in high dismissal rates as well as diminished advocacy by public defenders. Furthermore, the harsh penalties associated with drug offences provide incentive for plea bargaining to save time and avoid incarceration. This routinization of justice hardly promotes fair treatment and contributes to the weakening of our communities. Once an offender has a criminal record, obtaining education or employment becomes much more difficult. As a result, many turn back to a life of crime. Incarceration without treatment only leads to recidivism and a "revolving door" of costly, inefficient procedures. Chicago Appleseed and the Chicago Council of Lawyers believe, however, that having treatment programs available is only part of the solution. The criminal justice system has become the de facto major provider of drug treatment and mental health services in Cook County, and so must be restructured so that it can effectively and efficiently link individuals with needed treatment.
We propose the following:
Diversion
Create a Diversion Section within the Criminal Division of the Circuit Court of Cook County. This Section will consist of up to five courtrooms at the Criminal Courts Building at 26th and California dedicated to diverting 18 to 25 year old non-violent offenders from Central Bond Court and into treatment programs. This model will focus on adults accused of felonies but will also include those non-violent offenders accused of misdemeanors. It will employ the juvenile court approach of rehabilitation within the adult criminal justice system.
Transferring all judges sitting in the Central Bond Court at 26th and California from the First Municipal District into the Criminal Division. This will allow for better oversight and coordination between bond court and the diversion section.
Coordinating efforts with key players in the system to devise a process for diversion either immediately after the bond court proceeding, or immediately after arrest.
Improving the pretrial services program within the Criminal Division of the Circuit Court to better identify and divert non-violent offenders out of the criminal justice system. This includes adding information to the interviewing process and providing for a system through which information gathered in the pretrial interview will be verified.
Deferral
- We also propose the creation of a "stationhouse" deferral program in order to deal with small possession cases. Under this system, when the offender is brought in by the police, felony review would occur over the phone to determine eligibility for the deferral program. Eligible offenders then have the option of entering drug school and, if they complete the program, avoiding a trial and any charges. This deferral system allows nonviolent drug users to bypass the costly court system and receive treatment as early as possible. Furthermore, by allowing participants to avoid any record of criminal charges, the program allows for more education, housing, and employment opportunities, increasing the chances for rehabilitation.
Decreased case management and incarceration costs under this deferral program will result in enormous savings, while reducing recidivism and increasing public safety. Cook County's current drug school program is evidence for the potential for great results and great savings under the deferral program. Savings from decreased casework alone reached $2 million per year. Deferring directly from the police station would only provide greater savings.
The Drug Offender Stationhouse Deferral Program provides a systematic method of diverting nonviolent drug offenders out of the court system and into drug rehabilitation programs, saving money, improving lives, and most of all reducing illegal drug use.
Research and Evaluation
- We call for a research-based data collection and analysis system of the Criminal Justice System once it has been restructured, letting us know what works and what does not and allowing the system's stakeholders to act accordingly.
Conclusion
The criminal justice system is currently the de facto drug treatment and mental health system in Cook County but a costly one that often requires a felony conviction for treatment. The system should be restructured so that people are helped and money is saved. These proposals involve re-allocating resources rather than substantial increases of resources. But it is time that we must give this approach the necessary resources and respect in order for it to do its job effectively and justly.
Respectfully submitted, Malcolm C. Rich and Daniel T. Coyne For Chicago Appleseed Fund for Justice and the Chicago Council of Lawyers
For more information, please go to www.chicagoappleseed.org and click on Criminal Justice System Reform under the Programs tab.