Criminal Justice Review & Status Report September 2010 This report highlights significant events from the past year that pertain to Mecklenburg County s effort to coordinate the criminal justice system. After providing status updates, upcoming initiatives for the coming year are presented. I. Status Updates Status updates are provided below for system wide planning, the court system, State Justice Services, and jail. System wide Planning Criminal Justice Advisory Group (CJAG) The CJAG has been meeting monthly with consistent attendance from criminal justice stakeholders. Many of the meetings have focused on early case processing, information technology, and legislative changes. An information technology governance committee was formed to develop and integrate record management systems between criminal justice agencies. A three year strategic plan emerged from the committee and was recently adopted by the CJAG. Criminal Justice Citizen s Advisory Committee (CJCAC) The thirteen member committee has held monthly meetings for the past year to discuss criminal justice issues. On a couple of occasions, representatives from criminal justice agencies were invited to address the committee and provide their insight. Primary concerns identified by the committee to date include poor information technology in criminal justice agencies, deficient crime data, delayed case processing, and high recidivism. The committee is currently drafting a report of their findings for the Board of County Commissioners, and it should be completed by late September. Juvenile Crime Prevention Council (JCPC) The JCPC, by state statute, has the responsibility of planning, organizing, and evaluating juvenile justice programs within the county to reduce delinquency. In FY10 11, the council selected eight rehabilitative programs to share approximately $1.4 million dollars allocated by the Department of Juvenile Justice, which was a 5% decrease compared to the previous year. The committee also oversaw two addition funding opportunities from the state to reduce gang activity. The second block of gang prevention dollars, part of the federal stimulus package, will be used by the
Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department (CMPD) to reopen the Greeneville Community Center to work with at risk youths. Domestic Violence Fatality Review Team In the spring of this year, Community Support Services brought together community and justice stakeholders to create a Domestic Violence Fatality Team. The purpose of the Fatality Team is to conduct intensive reviews of domestic violence cases involving a homicide and/or suicide. The goal of the review is to determine if agencies can interact better to prevent future fatalities. Judge Jane Harper is chairperson for the 25 person team and she led the first case review in June. A second case review will occur this month. Court System County Funded Positions in the Court Set Due to budget reductions, Mecklenburg County eliminated seventeen vacant positions in the District Attorney s Office in July. Fourteen of the positions were victim assistants/legal aides and three were assistant district attorneys. The County, however, continues to fund 71 state contract positions, plus seven county positions, within the court set. A majority (44) of the positions are located in the District Attorney s Office. All positions funded by the County are currently filled. The value of the FY11 contract with the state is $4.76 million. Criminal Case Management Plan (Re org Plan) The Criminal Case Management Plan is operating in the superior court with three teams: persons, property, and drug. Under the new case management rules, cases are monitored to ensure they are adjudicated in a timely manner through improved scheduling and reduced continuances. As part of the plan, superior court judges, assistant district attorneys, public defenders, clerks, CMPD representatives, and case management coordinators meet on a monthly basis to review individual cases and address case processing issues. To date, implementation of the plan has resulted in faster dispositions, fewer dismissals, and more guilty pleas. (See Outcome Evaluation: Criminal Case Management Plan) Bail Policy Reengineering The 26 th Judicial District implemented a new bail policy in July that was developed through a committee of criminal justice stakeholders. Dr. Marie VanNostrand, regarded as a national expert on pretrial justice, provided technical assistance in the re engineering effort. The new policy emphasizes setting conditions of release based on risk level, with low risk defendants receiving non financial bonds and higher risk defendants receiving secured bonds. The policy also improves the process of placing defendants on Pretrial Services supervision and CMPD s electronic monitoring program. Since implementation, the policy has resulted in more unsecured bonds for traffic and misdemeanor cases. (See 2010 Bail Policy: Post Implementation Status Report)
Veteran s Court/Operation Recovery After receiving a multi year grant to assist veterans in the criminal justice system, the courts and Area Mental Health (AMH) have been collaborating with the Veteran s Administration and local providers to create a network of rehabilitative services. These services will address mental health, substance abuse, employment, housing, and veteran specific issues. The mental health court will also serve as the veteran s court, because of similarities between the two, and it will link accused offenders with satisfactory military service to appropriate resources. Judges Hoover and Nixon recently traveled with a group to observe a similar initiative in Buffalo, New York, and a new Veterans Service Specialist with AMH has begun identifying candidates for the court to consider. State Justice Services (SJS) Pretrial Services Restructuring In conjunction with the bail re engineering effort, Pretrial Services began restructuring their operations to improve bail investigations and supervision of program participants. Under the new approach, Pretrial Services gathers and verifies information for completing a risk assessment. The risk assessment is then utilized by the magistrates and judges to set conditions of release per the new bail policy. Defendants deemed suitable for program supervision are monitored based on the risk assessment results, with greater resources being directed at higher risk participants. The changes adopted by Pretrial Services, which are being implemented in stages, will align the program with national standards and evidenced based practices. Mecklenburg County Sentencing Services The Manager s Office assumed responsibility for Sentencing Services from the Center for Community Transitions in May, 2010. Sentencing Services conducts assessments on defendants and prepares sentencing plans for the courts. By moving the program under (SJS), the County desires to broaden the use of assessments to pinpoint service needs and reduce recidivism. Currently, a pilot project is being developed to assess accused female offenders shortly after their initial appearance in court. Early identification of risks and needs will enable rehabilitative services to be engaged sooner and will assist the courts in imposing meaningful sanctions. Justice Data Warehouse Using funds obtained from a Governor s Crime Commission grant, SJS and Information Services and Technology (IST) are creating a justice data warehouse that will pull electronic information from criminal justice agencies into a central location for analysis. Once implemented, comprehensive data will be easily accessible to monitor the volume and flow of criminal cases and identify emerging trends. SJS and IST are currently in the process of selecting a vendor to develop and implement the project. The target completion date is June, 2011.
Jail Jail Expansion Expansion of the Mecklenburg County Jail, and renovation of the Arrest Processing Center, has been suspended indefinitely due to budget restrictions and a decrease in the inmate population. Prior to suspending the project, the County Manager s Office completed the programming and design phases for jail expansion. This information will be extremely useful if the County decides to pursue construction in the future. The FY11 budget includes money for programming the Arrest Processing Center renovation and outfitting the interior of the second sprung structure. These projects will be re evaluated later in the year before proceeding. Target AP IST is designing a new software application for the Arrest Processing Center to replace the antiquated mainframe system. The project, called Target AP, will streamline the data gathering process and create a seamless interface with the jail s inmate record management system (i.e., Offender Management System, or OMS). IST recently concluded the requirements phase, to determine business needs, and is moving toward developing a prototype of the solution. The project s cost is approximately $1.2 million dollars and is slated for completion during the summer of 2011. Jail Population The jail population is continuing a downward trend as the average daily population is 5% less than one year ago and 14% less than the peak year of FY07. The decline appears attributable to fewer arrests, shorter lengths of stay, and a drop in federal prisoners. With the decrease in the inmate population, and the opening of the annex, the jail routinely remains below the functional capacity level. Short term projections indicate that the daily inmate population will continue to decline over the next few months (see Jail Population Trend Report). Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) Training In August, the ninth CIT class graduated from the week long training that educates law enforcement and detention officers on mental illness. The specialized training teaches participants how to recognize persons with mental illness and safely de escalate these individuals when they are in crisis. Goals of CIT include diverting mental health consumers from jail, reducing use of force incidents, and enhancing officer safety. To date, nearly 220 participants have completed the training, with more than half coming from the Sheriff s Office. The Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department is currently working AMH to develop a database for gathering information on persons with mental illness diverted to treatment services.
II. Upcoming Initiatives While many of the activities listed above will carry over into the coming year, there are several new initiatives that will be pursued to improve the coordination of the criminal justice system. These initiatives include the following: Collaborate with the New District Attorney The election of a new district attorney could potentially bring significant changes to local arrest and case processing procedures. The County Manager s Office and CJAG will work closely with the district attorney and his staff to build a trusting relationship based on the common goal of public safety. Recommendations from the Justice and Public Safety Task Force that have not been implemented will be introduced. In addition, the Criminal Case Management Plan needs to be adopted by the new district attorney in order for the plan to continue. Create Criminal Justice Services Existing criminal justice programs and services operating in the County Manager s Office will be consolidated into a unit called Criminal Justice Services (CJS). CJS will unite State Justice Services, Court System Planning, Pretrial Services, Sentencing Services, and Structured Day under one umbrella. The unit will be responsible for providing and coordinating resources within the criminal justice system. Form a Justice in the Community Committee Under the direction of the CJAG, the Justice in the Community Committee will be responsible for developing and integrating community based solutions to criminal behavior. It will bring together criminal justice personnel, Health and Safety FALT members, and community based providers to leverage resources and create a seamless and comprehensive network of rehabilitative services, treatment options, and sanctions. The goal of the committee will be to restore offenders as productive citizens while bringing justice to the victim and the community. Purge Old Criminal Warrants The warrant repository holds tens of thousands criminal warrants and a significant number are no longer viable for prosecution (e.g., the defendant or witness passed away, the arresting officer is no longer available, etc.). A committee will be formed under the CJAG to study the possibility of purging old criminal warrants and, if appropriate, to set appropriate criteria for clearing cases. Removing outdated warrants will help make the migration from the mainframe to the new Arrest Processing record management system smoother. Explore Collaboration between the Work Release & Restitution Center (WRRC) and Structured Day With budget cuts affecting programming at the WRRC, the County and Sheriff s Office will explore options to engage existing resources in providing lost services at the facility. Utilizing the
Structured Day Program, part of SJS, is one potential option. Structured Day currently provides job readiness training and job placement services to probationers at the WRRC location. Expanding the program s reach to include WRRC residents may provide an effective and costefficient solution. Engaging other community based services providers, such as the Center for Community Transitions, will be considered as well. Collaborate with the AOC on Information Technology The criminal justice system is hindered by outdated or underdeveloped record management systems in the state agencies. Considering that the state recently cut the AOC s information technology budget by $5.5 million, the prospect for improvement is not great. As such, the County, the individual state agencies, and the AOC need to explore new solutions and collaborate on moving away from a paper driven system to a more efficient and productive electronic process. Develop a Criminal Justice System Resource Management Plan The Resource Management Plan will review existing criminal justice expenditures as a whole and reassess their relative value and utility. The plan will evaluate if Mecklenburg County is 1) investing money in the right resources at the right proportion, 2) receiving the maximum benefit from its criminal justice investments, and 3) achieving results or missing opportunities through funding decisions.