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* From the Chicago Reporter…
Eight out of 10 misdemeanor cases have been dismissed between 2006 and 2012, shows a Chicago Reporter analysis of records for 1.4 million cases maintained by the Clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County and the Administrative Office of the Illinois Courts.
Cook County’s dismissal rate is among the highest in the nation, according to the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics. Candace McCoy, a professor at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice at The City University of New York, said that’s likely the result of a policing strategy she describes as “rounding up of the usual suspects.”
“Police can round people up that they see as disorderly,” said McCoy, an expert on pretrial processes. “Are these people guilty of anything? We don’t know, do we?”
* NBC Chicago…
[Cara Smith of the Sheriff’s Office] said a quarter of the low-level crime defendants currently in jail will have waited more than 60 days before receiving their verdicts.
* And the Twitters…
51% of pre-bond detainees at Cook County Jail intake today reported as mentally ill. Another day at the largest US mental health provider.
— Tom Dart (@TomDart) November 12, 2013
posted by Rich Miller
Wednesday, Nov 13, 13 @ 11:40 am
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I wish the need for resources for mental health treatment would be spoken of as a priority at other times than mass shootings or inability to treat effectively through incarceration comes up. The Affordabe Care Act has potential to help with that. However, this won’t necessarily change things for people whose healthcare coverage is Medicaid. We have the implementation of Integrated Care going on in the state and this massive, out-of-the blue proposal from Governor Quinn to combine all 9 of the Medicad Waivers. Certainly there is potential for improvement in change, but I don’t see it without additional resources. Where do those come from in a state with limited resources? Effective treatment is less expensive than incarceration and may support people to work at a level where they’re paying taxes instead of needing support.
As to the dismissal rate. It’s shameful and wasteful and needs a lawsuit questioning the consitutionality.
Comment by Earnest Wednesday, Nov 13, 13 @ 12:14 pm
The number of mentally ill detainees is shameful. I imagine most of them are regular residents of county jails in large urban settings.
Comment by Wensicia Wednesday, Nov 13, 13 @ 12:29 pm
=== said a quarter of the low-level crime defendants currently in jail will have waited more than 60 days before receiving their verdicts. ===
That is unbelievable for low-level crimes that may only result in serving a few weeks in jail as is.
Comment by Formerly Known As... Wednesday, Nov 13, 13 @ 12:48 pm
Thank you Rahm Emanuel for closing 6 of the 12 mental health clinics in Chicago.
As Ben Joravsky reported in March, those closings only saved $1.7 million - far less than the $3 million initially claimed by the city.
How much more than $1.7 million is being spent on the influx of new inmates?
For such a smart guy, it seems surprising Rahm couldn’t find room for those clinics anywhere in Chicago’s $6.97 billion budget.
Maybe Rahm’s not as smart as I thought he was.
Comment by Formerly Known As... Wednesday, Nov 13, 13 @ 1:01 pm
Interesting Reporter story. But the numbers need to be drilled into a little deeper. 80 percent of misdemeanors are dismissed (stunning,) but very few CC Jail inmates are locked up on misdemeanors…and if they are, odds are those misdemeanor arrests came while they were on parole or probation. That’s why they get locked up.
Comment by Frank Wednesday, Nov 13, 13 @ 1:57 pm
Be nice to them they are all voters.
Comment by Rollo Tomasi Wednesday, Nov 13, 13 @ 4:04 pm
I wonder if these numbers take into account defendants who receive supervision. If the term of supervision is successfully completed the case is dismissed; usually after 6 months or a year.
Comment by Late to the Game Thursday, Nov 14, 13 @ 8:22 am