09.05.08 A Call for Reform in Central Bond Court
It was reported in the September 2, 2008 edition of the Chicago Daily Law Bulletin that U.S. District Judge Virginia M. Kendall ordered Sheriff Tom Dart to determine the eligibility of defendants for electronic monitoring while on home detention. Dart's attorney replied that the sheriff does not have the necessary information to make that eligibility decision. This conflict is part of a long-running class action lawsuit over jail overcrowding, but the consequences go beyond the simple calculation of whether or not there are enough beds at Cook County Jail.
A court's determination of whether to conditionally release or incarcerate a criminal defendant until trial or other disposition of the case is an immensely important part of the criminal justice process. Incarcerated defendants have limited opportunity to work and communicate with attorneys, investigators, and witnesses, thereby impairing their ability to prepare a defense. Numerous studies have shown that defendants who remain in secure detention are at a significant disadvantage relative to those who are released pending trial.
All of this comes at a staggering cost to the taxpayer - the defendants and their employers lose earnings, families lose support, and the more direct costs of the incarceration itself are reported by the Cook County Sheriff's Department to be more than $100 per day per inmate.
In May 2006, in response to the growing problems with bond court and their consequences, a public forum co-sponsored by the Chicago Council of Lawyers and the Cook County Bar Association was convened. All of the stakeholders aired their positions, and a tentative agreement was reached to address some of the most pressing problems. Those agreed-upon changes were never instituted. Subsequently, a lawsuit was filed in federal court on behalf of the MacArthur Justice Center, challenging the use of televised hearings. That lawsuit remains unresolved.
In February 2007, the Council and the Chicago Appleseed Fund for Justice called for an immediate end of video bond hearings. We believe that comprehensive, in-person hearings are necessary to adequately present information so the judge can make an informed decision.
In December 2007, Chicago Appleseed Fund for Justice, working with the Chicago Council of Lawyers, published "A Report on Chicago's Felony Courts." This comprehensive report shed light on a criminal justice system, which has become our defacto mental health and drug treatment system. The report included 50 specific recommendations for change, such as suggestions for reallocation of resources, caseload and workload restructuring, facility improvements, and better use of diversion programs.
Among the most important of these recommendations are three that have a direct bearing on Bond Court:
We need in-person bond hearings with the capability of identifying non-violent offenders for special diversion programs.
We need a pre-trial services program to give the judges reliable information before bond is set. Recognizing the paucity of government funding, we suggest utilizing volunteer law students, lawyers, and social work students to gather information and prepare reports.
Judges, defense counsels, prosecutors, and probation officers need additional training.
In March, 2008, Chicago Appleseed, in cooperation with Chicago-Kent College of Law and Charles Loeffler of Harvard University, began a court watching program that focused on Central Bond Court. Current data confirms the conclusion that the current Central Bond Court system is devastating to an accused: the defendant is saddled with a thirty second hearing where no effort is made to put forth evidence on his behalf.
Since the release of the report on the felony courts, Chicago Appleseed and the Council have been in discussions with the Circuit Court of Cook County, calling for the use of a courtroom on the first floor of 26th Street for bond hearings, eliminating the need for videoconferencing. We have called for the reinstatement of a fully functional pre-trial services department to inform the court of relevant facts. We have recommended during these discussions that the probation department work with trained and supervised volunteer students and lawyers to gather the necessary background information in time for bond hearings. We have prepared a formal program proposal, and we are ready to act.
More recently, we have been part of discussions with the Criminal Division of the Circuit Court to determine whether Central Bond Court, coupled with an effective pre-trial services program, can be used to help bring together non-violent drug offenders under the age of 22 for special diversion programs, including the vocational and educational opportunities they need to survive.
It is time to start coordinating efforts to improve our criminal justice system. We call upon the major stakeholders to work together to create a coordinated private/public partnership to put needed reforms into place.
Daniel T. Coyne
President, Chicago Council of Lawyers
Associate Professor of Clinical Practice
Chicago-Kent College of Law
Mary E. Anderson
President, Chicago Appleseed Fund for Justice
Malcolm C. Rich
Executive Director
Chicago Appleseed Fund for Justice
Chicago Council of Lawyers