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Just spent morning sitting in audience of arraignments w/ someone interesting in learning more. Always amazes me how much injustice, waste, irrationality gets lost for the initiated. Court may be “public,” but the speed, language, & lack of context in court keeps so much secret. 
Some things you can clearly see. Shackles. Race disparities. Sea of officers. Retinas being scanned. Nervousness of those before judge. Today an older man who almost threw up. Relieved chuckles of court reporter when he didn’t. All taking place beneath “In God We Trust.”
Some things you can hear. The unnecessary severity & coldness of the judge. The remarkably high amounts of bail quickly requested & set ($5k / $10k / $100k) despite the obvious: they couldnt afford $10. People asking to speak only to be shut down by judge. “Ask your lawyer.”
But knowing that at least half the cases bail was set won’t even be eligible for bail in just 8 months. Knowing that a man charged with driving on a suspended license wouldn’t have been held overnight & brought to court but for failure to appear on a non-criminal summons ticket.
Understanding that prosecutors deciding who gets charged & w/ what & requesting all that bail are new prosecutors w/ little discretion. That when prosecutors cite “warrant history” as reason to cage someone, no one’s “absconding.” They forget. Can’t afford subway fare. Come back.
When someone pleads to “disorderly conduct,” yes theyre going home w/ no crim record. But theyre on hook for $120 mandatory fee, thatll lead to a warrant or 7 years bad credit if they dont pay. And that guilty plea ensures truth is suppressed & any police conduct is insulated.
When judge says “the file is stamped STEP” it means that court & prosecution acknowledge that substance use has likely played a role in the arrest (STEP is drug court). Yet they still decide to prosecute, cage, & process through a system ill-equipped to resolve this health issue.
When orders of protection are requested reflexively w/o thinking it means much more than staying away. It leads to homelessness, joblessness, unwanted separation, children w/o parents, a set up for rearrest. It’s also a decision often taken w/o permission of alleged “victim.”
When the judge sets bail in amounts that the person obviously can not afford or she has been told they can not afford, she is actually *violating the law.* NY law doesn’t allow for (rightly) preventative detention. Bail can only be set in amount “necessary to ensure return.”
Court officers call out charges using numbers. “140.20” is burglary in 3d degree. Common burglary charge. Sounds scary but it’s really petit theft in a building. Often bodega or construction site. Usually folks struggling w/ addiction. Vast majority are reduced to misdemeanors.
Charging decisions matter. A lot. Assuming for arguments sake this conduct should be allowed into system at all, it should be charged as petit larceny at most, but becomes a felony burglary charge, which may carry mandatory minimums & makes pretrial detention far more likely.
Could keep going. Bottom line: holding power accountable & ending mass criminalization requires nuanced context & knowledge. Public defenders have this in a unique way. But anyone can learn enough to make huge difference. Learn about @CourtWatchNYC. More than just packing court.
.@CourtWatchNYC recognizes that while showing up is impt, knowing what to look & listen for, how to translate unnecessarily technical & dehumanizing language in court, understanding context, & then sharing observations MATTER. Help accountability. Sign up.courtwatchnyc.org
