Misdemeanor Courts Are a Waste of Time and Money.
April 29, 2009
National Law Journal
By Tresa Baldas
So claims the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers,
which on Tuesday issued a first-of-its-kind national report on
the status of misdemeanor courts across the country. The report,
which involved 18 months' worth of research at courts in seven
states, concluded that state and local governments are wasting
millions of tax dollars to prosecute petty offenses, such as
curfew and open container violations, loitering and feeding the
homeless. The report found that taxpayers are footing the bill
for more than 10 million misdemeanor prosecutions per year,
paying an average of $60 a day, per inmate, to incarcerate
misdemeanor defendants.
Courts are also violating the constitutional rights of citizens
who are being hauled into court, the report claims, and often
coerced into cutting deals without legal representation.
The report, titled Minor Crimes, Massive Waste: The Terrible
Toll of America's Broken Misdemeanor Courts, comes on the heels
of a recent announcement that misdemeanors will no longer be
prosecuted in Contra Costa County, Calif. because of budget
cuts.
Perfect timing, noted NACDL President John Wesley Hall, who
called misdemeanor courts "a black hole for justice and
resources." Hall added, "It's a huge waste of money when you
think of the huge fundamental costs that go along with
misdemeanor prosecutions "the prosecution's time, the judge's
time, and jail incarceration time, "these are mostly hidden
costs."
Hall said that a huge part of the costs to communities is
jailing persons who cannot afford to pay fines. New York City's
jail rates are especially high, he said, noting that it costs
$200 a day tohouse a jail inmate there.
Money issues aside, Hall said he's more concerned with
misdemeanor courts "ramming" through defendants who can't afford
a lawyer and coercing them into striking deals that have
consequences, such as a crime showing up on a background check,
costing someone a job or credit. He is also calling on the
justice system to "find some way to decriminalize really, really
minor offenses."
"It's a crime to have your pants too low? That shouldn't be a
crime," he said.
The report, meanwhile, recommends that states divert nonviolent
misdemeanor cases that do not affect public safety to programs
that are less costly to taxpayers and repay society through
community service or civil fines.
Gerald B. Lefcourt, an attorney in private practice in New York
and a past president of NACDL, is calling for "smarter
misdemeanor policies" in New York.
"By imposing fines and community service rather than jail time
for the most minor offenses, New York City, New York State, and
states everywhere, can save millions on costly prosecutions
while still maintaining public safety," Lefcourt said in a
statement. " And with a reduced caseload, public defenders will
be able to provide the legal counsel the Constitution requires
for more serious cases."
A copy of the report is available at
.
National Association of
Criminal Defense Lawyers
1660 L. St. N.W., 12th
Floor
Washington, DC 20036
(202) 872-8600
Fax (202) 872-8690
assist@nacdl.org
