Monday, April 14, 2008
Kentucky Commonwealth Attorneys Expecting To Make Layoffs Due To Budget Cuts
The Prosecutors Advisory Council announced today that it may be forced to lay off approximately 100 people from prosecutors’ offices across the Commonwealth because of under funding in the FY 08-10 budget.
“We simply do not have the money to keep our existing staff on board,” said Ray Larson, Fayette County Commonwealth’s Attorney and member of the Prosecutors Advisory Council. “Now that the budget has been finalized, we will begin to formulate how the layoff plan will be implemented so that to the extent possible, public safety will not be compromised,” said Larson.
The estimated 100 person layoff constitutes nearly ten percent of the prosecutorial workforce in the Commonwealth.
There are 57 elected Commonwealth’s Attorneys and 120 elected County Attorneys whose staffs handle all of the criminal prosecutions in the Commonwealth. Prosecutorial employees include assistant prosecutors, victims’ advocates, detectives, and support staff in every county in the state.
Once the General Assembly passes a budget, the money allotted to prosecutors is administered by the Prosecutors Advisory Council. The Prosecutors Advisory Council consists of three Commonwealth’s Attorneys, three County Attorneys, and two citizen members, all of whom are appointed by the Governor. The Council will meet later this month to begin formulating a potential layoff plan to deal with the lack of sufficient funding in the FY 08-10 budget.
“These layoffs will be especially difficult considering the increased caseload and the additional duties placed on prosecutors over the last decade,” said Mike Foster, Christian County Attorney and Legislative Chair for the County Attorneys Association.
Since the year 2000, the General Assembly has enacted legislation that adds to prosecutorial duties without enacting a corresponding increase in funding. In the year 2000, the General Assembly passed the per se Driving Under the Influence law and identity- theft legislation. The legislature has also enacted the primary seatbelt law, the methamphetamine precursor law and the Elder Abuse Protection Act, among other criminal legislation.
According to Foster, “The criminal legislation passed by the General Assembly during the past few years has been effective and necessary. However, this legislation has greatly increased our workload, and this makes the current budget situation even more drastic.”
Every criminal case filed in the Commonwealth must be prosecuted by a County or Commonwealth’s Attorney. Caseloads for prosecutors have increased dramatically in the last ten years. In 2007 County Attorneys were handling caseloads in excess of 3,000 cases per prosecutor. Since the addition of Family Courts in 2002, County Attorneys are now handling at least 40,000 more cases each year. County Attorneys are responsible for prosecution of all District Court cases - including misdemeanor, juvenile and domestic crimes.
Since 2002 Commonwealth’s Attorneys, responsible for prosecution of all felony cases, have seen a 21% increase in their caseload. In 2002, approximately 27,000 felony cases were filed. Last year, nearly 32,000 felony cases such as murder, rape and child sexual abuse were filed. This is a 7,000 case increase from just five years ago.
Prosecutors are routinely handling cases in excess of recommended levels. For example, in Warren County, the Commonwealth’s Attorneys Office handled nearly 1,300 felony indictments last year. Commonwealth’s Attorneys handled 1,264 pending cases of child sexual abuse last year alone.
Prosecutors Advisory Council member Linda Tally Smith, Commonwealth’s Attorney for Boone and Gallatin counties, notes that her felony caseload has increased drastically in the last few years. “In Boone and Gallatin counties, we have seen a 26% increase in our caseload between 1997 and 2007.”
Commonwealth’s Attorney David Stengel, Jefferson County, adds, “The lack of sufficient funding for prosecutors will no doubt have an effect on the prosecutors’ offices and courts; however the impact goes much deeper. It reaches to the very places where we live. Reducing prosecutors at a time of rising crime will increase the caseload for each remaining prosecutor and cause delays in prosecutions and justice for the victims of crime. The current budget crisis threatens public safety in our communities.”
The potential layoffs concern both the presidents of the County and Commonwealth’s Attorneys Associations.
“The budgets of the Unified Prosecutorial System are personnel driven,” said Commonwealth’s Attorney Chris Cohron. “We do not have state cars or other expenses that can be cut when we are not funded sufficiently. In our case, personnel accounts for more than 90% of our budget.”
Brucie Moore, President of the County Attorneys’ Association, notes that the budget for the County Attorneys is over 98% personnel. “The County Attorneys of this state are already overburdened and stretched to the limit. Losing people from these offices is going to be devastating to the criminal justice system.”
“We simply do not have the money to keep our existing staff on board,” said Ray Larson, Fayette County Commonwealth’s Attorney and member of the Prosecutors Advisory Council. “Now that the budget has been finalized, we will begin to formulate how the layoff plan will be implemented so that to the extent possible, public safety will not be compromised,” said Larson.
The estimated 100 person layoff constitutes nearly ten percent of the prosecutorial workforce in the Commonwealth.
There are 57 elected Commonwealth’s Attorneys and 120 elected County Attorneys whose staffs handle all of the criminal prosecutions in the Commonwealth. Prosecutorial employees include assistant prosecutors, victims’ advocates, detectives, and support staff in every county in the state.
Once the General Assembly passes a budget, the money allotted to prosecutors is administered by the Prosecutors Advisory Council. The Prosecutors Advisory Council consists of three Commonwealth’s Attorneys, three County Attorneys, and two citizen members, all of whom are appointed by the Governor. The Council will meet later this month to begin formulating a potential layoff plan to deal with the lack of sufficient funding in the FY 08-10 budget.
“These layoffs will be especially difficult considering the increased caseload and the additional duties placed on prosecutors over the last decade,” said Mike Foster, Christian County Attorney and Legislative Chair for the County Attorneys Association.
Since the year 2000, the General Assembly has enacted legislation that adds to prosecutorial duties without enacting a corresponding increase in funding. In the year 2000, the General Assembly passed the per se Driving Under the Influence law and identity- theft legislation. The legislature has also enacted the primary seatbelt law, the methamphetamine precursor law and the Elder Abuse Protection Act, among other criminal legislation.
According to Foster, “The criminal legislation passed by the General Assembly during the past few years has been effective and necessary. However, this legislation has greatly increased our workload, and this makes the current budget situation even more drastic.”
Every criminal case filed in the Commonwealth must be prosecuted by a County or Commonwealth’s Attorney. Caseloads for prosecutors have increased dramatically in the last ten years. In 2007 County Attorneys were handling caseloads in excess of 3,000 cases per prosecutor. Since the addition of Family Courts in 2002, County Attorneys are now handling at least 40,000 more cases each year. County Attorneys are responsible for prosecution of all District Court cases - including misdemeanor, juvenile and domestic crimes.
Since 2002 Commonwealth’s Attorneys, responsible for prosecution of all felony cases, have seen a 21% increase in their caseload. In 2002, approximately 27,000 felony cases were filed. Last year, nearly 32,000 felony cases such as murder, rape and child sexual abuse were filed. This is a 7,000 case increase from just five years ago.
Prosecutors are routinely handling cases in excess of recommended levels. For example, in Warren County, the Commonwealth’s Attorneys Office handled nearly 1,300 felony indictments last year. Commonwealth’s Attorneys handled 1,264 pending cases of child sexual abuse last year alone.
Prosecutors Advisory Council member Linda Tally Smith, Commonwealth’s Attorney for Boone and Gallatin counties, notes that her felony caseload has increased drastically in the last few years. “In Boone and Gallatin counties, we have seen a 26% increase in our caseload between 1997 and 2007.”
Commonwealth’s Attorney David Stengel, Jefferson County, adds, “The lack of sufficient funding for prosecutors will no doubt have an effect on the prosecutors’ offices and courts; however the impact goes much deeper. It reaches to the very places where we live. Reducing prosecutors at a time of rising crime will increase the caseload for each remaining prosecutor and cause delays in prosecutions and justice for the victims of crime. The current budget crisis threatens public safety in our communities.”
The potential layoffs concern both the presidents of the County and Commonwealth’s Attorneys Associations.
“The budgets of the Unified Prosecutorial System are personnel driven,” said Commonwealth’s Attorney Chris Cohron. “We do not have state cars or other expenses that can be cut when we are not funded sufficiently. In our case, personnel accounts for more than 90% of our budget.”
Brucie Moore, President of the County Attorneys’ Association, notes that the budget for the County Attorneys is over 98% personnel. “The County Attorneys of this state are already overburdened and stretched to the limit. Losing people from these offices is going to be devastating to the criminal justice system.”
# posted by Joe Kinzer @ 5:37 PM 
