Accused of Stealing a Backpack, High School Student Jailed for Nearly Three Years Without Trial

[AndreaCG]

24. Ok I work in Bronx Criminal Court

This is not in the least meant to justify this outrage but I will try to explain what I surmise is the reason. There are two criminal courts in each borough. Criminal court is where the original arraignment of all cases occurs, and misdemeanors and violations remain here for either pleas or a trial. Supreme Court is where felonies are handled. At one point the two courts were merged, which was meant to streamline the operations of the court. This experiment failed and we are once again separate courts.

The primary problem is we are SEVERELY understaffed in every position, from judges on down to the lowest level clerical worker. Additionally, while a new court building was erected about six years ago, which was meant to house both parts of the criminal division, it was incredibly poorly designed in every way possible. Two simple examples: courtrooms which are too small and not nearly enough of them. And WHO THE FUCK thought it was a good idea to design an all glass courthouse AFTER 9-11?????!!!! We have had panels fall onto the street!

This all results in a terrible backlog of cases. Stats for the five boroughs regarding how long a defendant awaits trial are not good. The Bronx is much worse than average. And while substantial bail must be set on serious crimes, even bail of $1000 is out of the reach of many defendants.

However, without knowing all the details of this particular defendant's background, l don't know if he has a history of prior criminal convictions or a warrant history that would indicate whether he is indeed a flight risk. That said, three years to face trial is outrageous yet sadly not atypical in the Bronx.