CJA454 Internet Article Analysis
Internet Article Analysis
CJA454
May 4, 2015
Jennifer Ralph
Instructor: William Whalen
The economic downturn has resulted in budget cuts to the criminal justice system across the nation. As a result, state legislators looked for ways to reduce budgets. One area of focus has been the court system. This paper will present an evaluation of the budgeting crisis and potential recommendations to the court system.
A current budgeting issue within the California criminal justice system is the continuing financial cuts to the courts. Robert (2013) states “the court system’s budget was cut by more than $1 billion” within the last five years (para 3), and approximately 65 percent of the financial aid from the state’s General Fund was lost. A hiring freeze and staff layoffs was implemented keep the court system operating, but at a high cost. The Judicial Council of California (2015) reported that 52 courthouses have closed since 2008, with many others operate with reduced operating hours. This has deprived two million Californians have been deprived of access to the judicial process (Judicial Council of California, 2015). Budget cuts have led to longer and further drives to locate a courthouse, long lines, and even longer waits for dispute settlement. It is crucial to identify funding solutions for the criminal justice system to provide necessary legal services in a timely and efficient manner.
In order to identifying a reasonable solution for the California courts, it makes sense to look at the experience of another state faced with similar budget issues. The Washington state court system faced (and continues to face) funding crises, ranking last in the country for trial court funding, defense of indigent offenders, and the prosecution (Board for Judicial Administration Court Funding Task Force, 2004). Budget cuts led to limited staffing and reduced program funding. Legislators understood that this meant creation of inventive judicial programs to manage
CJA454
May 4, 2015
Jennifer Ralph
Instructor: William Whalen
The economic downturn has resulted in budget cuts to the criminal justice system across the nation. As a result, state legislators looked for ways to reduce budgets. One area of focus has been the court system. This paper will present an evaluation of the budgeting crisis and potential recommendations to the court system.
A current budgeting issue within the California criminal justice system is the continuing financial cuts to the courts. Robert (2013) states “the court system’s budget was cut by more than $1 billion” within the last five years (para 3), and approximately 65 percent of the financial aid from the state’s General Fund was lost. A hiring freeze and staff layoffs was implemented keep the court system operating, but at a high cost. The Judicial Council of California (2015) reported that 52 courthouses have closed since 2008, with many others operate with reduced operating hours. This has deprived two million Californians have been deprived of access to the judicial process (Judicial Council of California, 2015). Budget cuts have led to longer and further drives to locate a courthouse, long lines, and even longer waits for dispute settlement. It is crucial to identify funding solutions for the criminal justice system to provide necessary legal services in a timely and efficient manner.
In order to identifying a reasonable solution for the California courts, it makes sense to look at the experience of another state faced with similar budget issues. The Washington state court system faced (and continues to face) funding crises, ranking last in the country for trial court funding, defense of indigent offenders, and the prosecution (Board for Judicial Administration Court Funding Task Force, 2004). Budget cuts led to limited staffing and reduced program funding. Legislators understood that this meant creation of inventive judicial programs to manage