{"id":28642,"date":"2022-02-10T23:52:49","date_gmt":"2022-02-10T23:52:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cjstudents.com\/?p=28642"},"modified":"2022-02-10T23:52:49","modified_gmt":"2022-02-10T23:52:49","slug":"prison-overcrowding-a-more-complex-issue-that-meets-the-eye","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cjstudents.com\/index.php\/2022\/02\/10\/prison-overcrowding-a-more-complex-issue-that-meets-the-eye\/","title":{"rendered":"Prison overcrowding a more complex issue that meets the eye"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> [ad_1]<\/p>\n<p>James E. Stewart Sr.<\/p>\n<div>\n<aside class=\"gnt_em gnt_em__fp gnt_em_vp__tp gnt_em__el\" aria-label=\"Video - Today in History for February 10th\">\n<div class=\"gnt_em_vp_w\" data-g-r=\"vp_tp\" data-c-vt=\"teal\" data-t-pl=\"teal-hero\"><button class=\"gnt_em_vp_a gnt_em_vp__tp_a\" data-g-r=\"vp_ap vp_tg\" data-c-vpattrs=\"{&quot;muted&quot;:true,&quot;bContent&quot;:false,&quot;an&quot;:&quot;la-shreveport-C1040&quot;,&quot;pn&quot;:&quot;The Times&quot;,&quot;vidNum&quot;:1,&quot;docking&quot;:true}\" data-c-vpdata=\"{&quot;adsEnabled&quot;:true,&quot;awsPath&quot;:&quot;news\/national&quot;,&quot;byline&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;canonicalURL&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;contentSourceCode&quot;:&quot;APDM&quot;,&quot;createDate&quot;:&quot;2022-02-10T01:11:18Z&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;AP&quot;,&quot;duration&quot;:76000,&quot;headline&quot;:&quot;Today in History for February 10th&quot;,&quot;hlsURL&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/hlsmedia.gannett-cdn.com\/authoring\/video-renditions\/50eaf555-10a9-4653-95e7-120f4990aaf9\/26b70d32-d368-44c0-934a-33889c76bf43\/1080p_30fps,720p_30fps,480p_30fps,master.m3u8?subtitles=6729528001&quot;,&quot;id&quot;:&quot;6729528001&quot;,&quot;image&quot;:{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2022\/02\/10\/USAT\/88bb7008-b964-4652-87ff-971bbbbc860a-50eaf555-10a9-4653-95e7-120f4990aaf9_thumbnail.png&quot;,&quot;opto&quot;:true},&quot;initialPublishDate&quot;:&quot;2022-02-10T01:11:18Z&quot;,&quot;keywords&quot;:&quot;USAT Video&quot;,&quot;mp4URL&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/downloadmedia.gannett-cdn.com\/authoring\/video-renditions\/50eaf555-10a9-4653-95e7-120f4990aaf9\/26b70d32-d368-44c0-934a-33889c76bf43\/1080p_30fps.mp4&quot;,&quot;origin&quot;:&quot;AP Domestic&quot;,&quot;pageURL&quot;:{&quot;long&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/www.usatoday.com\/videos\/news\/nation\/2022\/02\/10\/today-history-february-10th\/6729528001\/&quot;},&quot;promoBrief&quot;:&quot;Highlights of this day in history:  a Cold War prisoner exchange; boxer Mike Tyson convicted of rape; Arthur Miller's 'Death of a Salesman' opens on Broadway; Bob Dylan's 'The Times They Are a Changin'' released.  (Feb. 10)&quot;,&quot;propertyName&quot;:&quot;USATODAY&quot;,&quot;publishDate&quot;:&quot;2022-02-10T13:23:36Z&quot;,&quot;series&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;ssts&quot;:{&quot;section&quot;:&quot;news&quot;,&quot;subsection&quot;:&quot;nation&quot;,&quot;topic&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;subtopic&quot;:&quot;&quot;},&quot;tags&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:&quot;68532648-1f35-4dac-a1dd-26cd518c074d&quot;,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;USAT Video&quot;}],&quot;title&quot;:&quot;Today in History for February 10th&quot;,&quot;url&quot;:&quot;\/videos\/news\/nation\/2022\/02\/10\/today-history-february-10th\/6729528001\/&quot;}\" aria-label=\"Play video\"><img alt=\"\" class=\"gnt_em_vp_img\" src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2022\/02\/10\/USAT\/88bb7008-b964-4652-87ff-971bbbbc860a-50eaf555-10a9-4653-95e7-120f4990aaf9_thumbnail.png?width=660&amp;height=371&amp;fit=crop&amp;format=pjpg&amp;auto=webp\" data-g-r=\"vp_po\" elementtiming=\"ar-lead-image\" decoding=\"async\"\/><svg class=\"gnt_em_vp_svg\"><use xlink:href=\"#gnt_svg_video_play\"\/><\/svg><\/button><\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Caddo Parish Sheriff Steve Prator has chosen a moment when everyone in the local criminal justice system is stretched thin to criticize others in an effort to deflect from his own failures.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">\u201cSometimes the loudest person in the room is not the smartest person,\u201d\u00a0 Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers recently said.\u00a0 \u00a0\u201cSometimes the loudest person in the room is not the person who has all the facts on their side or the truth on their side.\u00a0 \u00a0Sometimes there\u2019s a lot of wisdom in silence.\u00a0 Sometimes there\u2019s a lot of wisdom in being selective on what you say.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"gnt_em gnt_em_img gnt_em_img__inset\"><img class=\"gnt_em_img_i\" style=\"height:400px\" data-g-r=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/-mm-\/6ff826074873671bee006aaabfb8175493e446c4\/c=25-0-775-1000\/local\/-\/media\/2017\/04\/12\/LAGroup\/Shreveport\/636276056640547351-DA-James-E.-Stewart-Sr.-2016.jpg?width=300&amp;height=400&amp;fit=crop&amp;format=pjpg&amp;auto=webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/-mm-\/6ff826074873671bee006aaabfb8175493e446c4\/c=25-0-775-1000\/local\/-\/media\/2017\/04\/12\/LAGroup\/Shreveport\/636276056640547351-DA-James-E.-Stewart-Sr.-2016.jpg?width=600&amp;height=800&amp;fit=crop&amp;format=pjpg&amp;auto=webp 2x\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"James E. Stewart Sr., Caddo Parish district attorney\"\/><\/figure>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Recently a 330-pound prisoner with a history of issues at Caddo Correctional Center hit one of the sheriff&#8217;s 125-pound female deputies during a prisoner extraction from a cell, breaking her jaw.\u00a0 This failure of protocol and possible breach of the duty to protect an employee from a clear and present danger has been turned into a launch point for comparisons with prison violence, overcrowding, and wait time.\u00a0<\/p>\n<aside aria-label=\"advertisement\" class=\"gnt_m gnt_x gnt_x__lbl gnt_x__al\"\/>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">In the past, we in the criminal justice system have dealt with any issues through communication and joint efforts by the judges, the district attorney, the public defender head, and parish and municipal law enforcement leaders.\u00a0 We worked the issues together, and did not resort to grandstanding and misleading statistics.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">The attacks on the District Attorney\u2019s Office by this sheriff are nothing new.\u00a0 \u00a0My predecessors Paul Carmouche and the late Charles Rex Scott were attacked by this same sheriff for various random issues and delays in trials, at times when the homicide rate was half of today\u2019s tally.\u00a0 Some murder cases in 2007, 15 years ago, took several years to prosecute, not because of a slothful Mr. Carmouche or Mr. Scott, or lazy judges, but to ensure fair trials and the Constitutionality of the legal process.\u00a0 \u00a0Another example of the rising crisis of violent crimes we deal with now is that in 2015 we had one attempted homicide case involving a juvenile;\u00a0 In 2020-2021 , there were 17 such cases of attempted homicide or homicide involving juveniles.\u00a0 Where appropriate, many of those cases have been transferred from Juvenile Court to District Court where defendants face longer prison sentences.\u00a0<\/p>\n<aside aria-label=\"advertisement\" class=\"gnt_m gnt_x gnt_x__lbl gnt_x__al\"\/>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">As\u00a0 a local judge told me when discussing the sheriff\u2019s criticism, \u201cThis is not (the television show) \u2018Law and Order.\u2019\u00a0 We have to constantly communicate that to jurors.\u00a0 Trials are not commenced and finished in one hour.\u201d\u00a0 Judges, assistant district attorneys, public defenders and other court personnel work hard every day in the overburdened criminal system.\u00a0 The exasperated judge noted that the sheriff\u2019s office asked for a hiatus in inmate transport for several weeks so that CCC could get over a COVID rash.\u00a0 \u00a0This caused major delays in the criminal justice system he now criticizes and in which claims COVID plays no part.\u00a0<\/p>\n<aside class=\"gnt_em gnt_em_anc\" id=\"gnt_atomsnc\" data-g-r=\"lazy\" data-gl-method=\"loadAnc\" aria-label=\"Newsletter signup form\"\/>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Defendants rarely if ever come to court and plead guilty as charged on their first appearance.\u00a0 In almost every felony case, there is a preliminary examination and numerous motions filed and heard before a trial even commences.\u00a0 \u00a0Some of the most violent cases involve sanity issues, which Constitutionally brings the case to a halt until a sanity commission of psychiatrists is empaneled, all members individually visit with the defendant, and the commission renders a written decision.\u00a0 \u00a0This process can take many months.\u00a0 It sometimes takes a year or more to impanel the psychiatrists to come to their conclusion.\u00a0 \u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\"><strong class=\"gnt_ar_b_al\">More:<\/strong><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/story\/news\/2022\/02\/04\/caddo-sheriff-says-trial-delays-causing-spike-local-violence\/6650233001\/\" rel=\"noopener\" data-t-l=\":b|e|inline click|${u}\" class=\"gnt_ar_b_a\">Caddo Sheriff says trial delays are causing overcrowding, leading to Parish prison violence<\/a><\/p>\n<aside class=\"gnt_em gnt_em_fo__bet-best\" aria-label=\"Scores and odds from Tipico\" data-g-r=\"lazy\" data-gl-type=\"comment\"><!--@pre<iframe class=gnt_em_fo_if src=\"https:\/\/www.shreveporttimes.com\/tangfrag\/sports\/gaming\/bet-best?prm-embedded&prm-teamid=659&prm-gnteamid=17&prm-league=NFL#fhp-assetid=6736777001\" loading=lazy sandbox=\"allow-scripts allow-popups allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox allow-forms\" title=\"Scores and odds from Tipico\"><\/iframe>--><\/aside>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Every case has its own issues, such as judge recusals, housing of juveniles to be prosecuted in adult court, delays in crime lab results, getting all necessary reports from law enforcement, locating witnesses and police officers on vacation days or assignment, or finding police officers who have left the state.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Most of the cases cited by the sheriff have had numerous changes of defense attorneys, another huge issue in our state\u2019s strained criminal justice system.\u00a0 \u00a0Any time a new defense lawyer is brought in, the case comes to a halt while that attorney catches up.\u00a0 \u00a0Some of the cases cited by the sheriff to the media have had six or seven defense attorney changes.\u00a0 \u00a0But in half the cases he disingenuously cites, the defendants have already been tried and convicted and are serving their time in Caddo Correctional Center.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">I reached out to former Caddo Parish District Attorney Paul Carmouche to opine on the issue.\u00a0 \u201cThe problem is everybody wants everybody in jail with high bonds, then when the jail is full there\u2019s nowhere else to go,\u201d he said, \u201cIf the sheriff wants speedy trials, we have to get more judges, more court space, more prosecutors, more public defenders, and it all costs money.\u201d<\/p>\n<aside aria-label=\"advertisement\" class=\"gnt_m gnt_x gnt_x__lbl gnt_x__al\"\/>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">All in-person Caddo Parish court proceedings were suspended due to COVID emergency stay orders from either the Louisiana Supreme Court or our local judges beginning on March 16, 2020 through May 18, 2020.\u00a0 The Caddo Courthouse was closed for six days due to unprecedented inclement weather in January and February 2021, causing further delays.\u00a0 Moreover the Caddo judges have currently suspended jury trials from January 10, 2022 until March 2022.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Additionally, succeeding waves of COVID cases caused by variations of the virus, including the Delta and Omicron varieties, also have led to strictures, postponements, and orders that have affected proceedings, especially jury trials.\u00a0 Specifically in Caddo Parish, in the past two years since the start of the pandemic, 42 jury sessions were lost due to emergency orders from the judges, which shut down the courts.\u00a0 \u00a0The loss of jury sessions by court order resulted in 210 unused days of court.\u00a0 \u00a0Additional other COVID-caused delays have been caused by defendants, witnesses, jurors, lawyers and judges contracting COVID, as well as limitations on transportation of inmates due to COVID issues.\u00a0 \u00a0Caddo is not alone because these COVID related delays have similarly affected other large Parishes such as East Baton Rouge, Orleans, Jefferson, St. Tammany, and most if not all of the 42 Louisiana judicial districts.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Jefferson Parish, with 429,711 residents, 16 criminal court judges and 82 assistant district attorneys, completed 9 criminal jury trials in 2020 and 20 in 2021.\u00a0 Orleans Parish, with a population of 388,424 has 14 criminal court judges and 83 assistant district attorneys, and had 14 criminal jury trials in 2020 and zero in 2021.\u00a0 East Baton Rouge Parish, population 436,061, has nine criminal court judges and 48 assistant district attorneys, and conducted 14 criminal jury trials in 2020.\u00a0<\/p>\n<aside aria-label=\"advertisement\" class=\"gnt_m gnt_x gnt_x__lbl gnt_x__al\"\/>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">And Caddo Parish?\u00a0 With a population of 237,848, we have five criminal court judges, and 21 adult criminal court assistant district attorneys.\u00a0 However, our Parish had 24 criminal court jury trials in 2021 and 29 in 2020, which for both years was more than any other parish in Louisiana.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Aside from judges whose numbers have not increased in decades, the only thing preventing us from holding criminal jury trials now is\u00a0 a moratorium our judges have put in place until March 1, as a precaution against the newest variant of the COVID-19 virus.\u00a0 When the moratorium ends, your Caddo Parish District Attorney office remains ready to go.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\"><strong class=\"gnt_ar_b_al\">More:<\/strong><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/story\/news\/local\/2022\/02\/01\/assault-caddo-correctional-shows-problem-trial-backlog-overcrowding-shreveport-louisiana-covid-issue\/9292179002\/\" rel=\"noopener\" data-t-l=\":b|e|inline click|${u}\" class=\"gnt_ar_b_a\">Assault at Caddo Correctional highlights problems with trial system backlog, sheriff says<\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Research from the National Institute of Health, the federal government, prison reform organizations, and any other modern academic research of crime,\u00a0 \u00a0all establish that it is the chance of being caught rather than the degree of punishment that scares offenders from criminal activity.\u00a0 The sheriff is the chief law enforcement officer in Caddo Parish, and 80 percent of Caddo Parish\u2019s population is in Shreveport, but he chooses to not investigate crimes of violence nor actively patrol to prevent crime where 80 percent of Caddo Parish citizens reside.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Last year, the sheriff criticized the judges, the district attorney, the Governor, the Legislature, the Caddo Parish Commission, the Shreveport City Council, colleges, universities, and the school board, in a manifesto he, of course,\u00a0 circulates to the media.\u00a0 \u00a0This is not service to the people of Caddo but a continuous prideful tantrum which is counter productive to solving the criminal crisis in our community.\u00a0 \u00a0Our responsibility is to the citizens of Caddo Parish as required by the Constitution and the laws of Louisiana, not the sheriff.\u00a0 During these trying times, we will continue to work with those who can set their egos aside and work for the good of people.\u00a0 The judges\u2019 stay has temporarily stopped jury trials but has not stopped this office from working hard every day to move cases and serve justice.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\"><em>James E. Stewart Sr. is the Caddo Parish District Attorney.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>[ad_2]<br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.shreveporttimes.com\/story\/opinion\/2022\/02\/10\/james-e-stewart-sr-prison-overcrowding-more-complex-issue-meets-eye-caddo-correction-shreveport\/6736777001\/\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[ad_1] James E. Stewart Sr. Caddo Parish Sheriff Steve Prator has chosen a moment when&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":28643,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[25],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-28642","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-research"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cjstudents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28642","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cjstudents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cjstudents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cjstudents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cjstudents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=28642"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cjstudents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28642\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28644,"href":"https:\/\/cjstudents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28642\/revisions\/28644"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cjstudents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/28643"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cjstudents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28642"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cjstudents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=28642"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cjstudents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=28642"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}