NCJ Number
46641
Date Published
1976
Length
38 pages
Annotation
A REPORT OF A 3-MONTH TEST PERIOD OF A PILOT PROGRAM TO IMPROVE CASE-FLOW MANAGEMENT, ELIMINATE TRIAL DELAYS, AND REDUCE THE CRIMINAL CASE BACKLOG IN THE CONNECTICUT COURT OF COMMON PLEAS IS PRESENTED.
Abstract
THE PILOT PROGRAM WAS BASED ON THE RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE INSTITUTE OF JUDICIAL ADMINISTRATION THAT: (1) CONTROL OF CASE SCHEDULING BE TRANSFERRED FROM THE PROSECUTOR TO THE COURT; (2) ALL CASES FOR SPECIFIC ACTION BE SCHEDULED ON A CERTAIN DATE; (3) STRICT POLICIES FOR THE GRANTING OR WITHHOLDING OF CONTINUANCES BE ADOPTED; AND (4) STANDARDS FOR PROCESSING FELONY AND MISDEMEANOR CASES BE ADOPTED AND PROMULGATED AS GUIDELINES FOR JUDGES. THE COURTS SELECTED FOR IMPLEMENTATION OF THESE RECOMMENDATIONS WERE ONE WITH A RELATIVELY HIGH-VOLUME CASELOAD (NEW HAVEN), ONE WITH A MEDIUM-VOLUME CASELOAD (WATERBURY), AND ONE WITH A LOW-VOLUME CASELOAD (WEST HAVEN). TO MONITOR THE SUCCESS OF THE PROGRAM, INDEPTH INTERVIEWS WERE CONDUCTED, AND CASES PENDING FOR OVER AND UNDER 60 DAYS WERE COUNTED. STATISTICALLY, WATERBURY SHOWED THE GREATEST IMPROVEMENT. AT THE BEGINNING OF THE PROGRAM, 45 PERCENT OF THE PENDING CASES WERE OVER 60 DAYS OLD, WHILE AT THE END OF THE TEST PERIOD, ONLY 28 PERCENT WERE OVER 60 DAYS OLD. CASES AWAITING JURY TRIAL HAD BEEN REDUCED FROM 98 TO 29. INTERVIEWS WITH THE PROSECUTION, PUBLIC DEFENDER, AND CLERK'S OFFICE INDICATED UNANIMOUS APPROVAL. TIME STANDARDS ARE STRICTLY RESPECTED. THERE HAS ALSO BEEN A DRAMATIC INCREASE IN THE NUMBER OF PLEAS ENTERED WITHIN 21 DAYS OF ARREST, ALTHOUGH THE STANDARDS WERE MODIFIED TO PERMIT THE PROSECUTOR TO GRANT A CONTINUANCE OF NOT MORE THAN 7 DAYS. DAILY CASELOAD AVERAGES 60 TO 80 CASES. PRETRIAL CONFERENCES ARE SCHEDULED FOR WITHIN 14 DAYS OF THE PLEA DATE. APPROXIMATELY 60 PERCENT OF CASES CLAIMED FOR JURY TRIAL ARE SETTLED AT PRETRIAL CONFERENCE. IT SEEMED CLEAR THAT THE PROGRAM'S SUCCESS AT WATERBURY IS ATTRIBUTABLE TO STRICT ADHERENCE TO TIME AND CONTINUANCE RECOMMENDATIONS. IN WEST HAVEN, CASES OVER 60 DAYS OLD WERE REDUCED FROM 48 TO 32 PERCENT, AND CASES AWAITING JURY TRIAL WERE REDUCED FROM 159 TO 37. ALTHOUGH TIME STANDARDS AND STRICT CONTINUANCE POLICIES ARE NOT BEING COMPLETELY OBSERVED, FIRST APPEARANCES ARE SCHEDULED 1 TO 7 DAYS FROM ARREST, ALMOST ALL CASES ARE DISCUSSED WITH THE DEFENSE ATTORNEYS PRIOR TO FIRST APPEARANCE, AND THE MANDATORY PRETRIAL CONFERENCE APPEARS TO BE WORKING WELL. THE JUDGE DOES NOT PARTICIPATE IN THE PRETRIAL CONFERENCE, AND THE CALENDAR IS STILL LARGELY CONTROLLED BY THE PROSECUTOR. THE PILOT PROGRAM IN NEW HAVEN HAS HAD LITTLE IMPACT. TIME STANDARDS ARE NOT STRICTLY OBSERVED, AND SIGNIFICANT NUMBERS OF CONTINUANCES ARE BEING GRANTED. PROBLEMS WITH SCHEDULING, OVERLOADS, THE JUDGES' LACK OF WILLINGNESS TO FORCE ACTION ON PENDING CASES, AND FREQUENT CONTINUANCES ARE FELT TO HAVE LIMITED THE IMPACT OF THE PROGRAM. WHILE CLERICAL/ADMINISTRATIVE PROBLEMS COULD BE SOLVED, CHANGING THE ATTITUDES OF THE JUDGES WILL BE MORE DIFFICULT. SPECIFIC PROGRAM RECOMMENDATIONS ARE PRESENTED IN THE APPENDIX. (JAP)