NCJ Number
180243
Date Published
1999
Length
40 pages
Annotation
This is a descriptive overview of the context and process of felony justice in Louisiana's Jefferson Parish.
Abstract
The study generated needed information about the context of felony justice in the court and helped define appropriate areas of judicial accountability. It revisits the same court process, judicial accountability, and judicial performance areas addressed in both the 1996 and 1998 research. The three performance areas evaluated were case processing time, compliance with American Bar Association time standards, and inventory of cases. The study findings are based on a random sample of 25 percent of all felony cases that closed in each division of court during 1998. Records maintained by the Jefferson Parish Clerk of Court were the primary sources of information for the research. Similar research in 1998 shows that the court and other criminal justice agency representatives successfully collaborated both to identify areas of major need in the felony case process and to develop strategies to address them. The success of these initiatives bodes well for greater efficiency and accountability in the court and the parish's entire criminal justice system. In addition, formal and informal efforts at coordination and system enhancements are ongoing. The current research shows, however, that there is room for additional case-processing improvements in the court. Although overall felony case-processing time in 1998 remained virtually unchanged from 1997 levels, the slowest divisions of court still require over twice the time to dispose of cases as the fastest divisions of court, and the size of the inventory of open cases varies widely among court divisions. The study recommends that the court continue to pursue and formalize proactive docket-management policies and procedures such as those undertaken by many judges in the court during the last few years. 9 exhibits