The Quality of Justice in Misdeameanor Arraignment Courts Ralph H
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology Volume 53 Article 6 Issue 2 June Summer 1962 The Quality of Justice in Misdeameanor Arraignment Courts Ralph H. Nutter Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarlycommons.law.northwestern.edu/jclc Part of the Criminal Law Commons, Criminology Commons, and the Criminology and Criminal Justice Commons Recommended Citation Ralph H. Nutter, The Quality of Justice in Misdeameanor Arraignment Courts, 53 J. Crim. L. Criminology & Police Sci. 215 (1962) This Comment is brought to you for free and open access by Northwestern University School of Law Scholarly Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology by an authorized editor of Northwestern University School of Law Scholarly Commons. COMMENTS AND RESEARCH REPORTS THE QUALITY OF JUSTICE IN MISDEMEANOR ARRAIGNMENT COURTS RALPH H. NUTTER* The massive increase of population in Los TnRAric CASES Angeles has had a peculiarly harmful effect on the In the main traffic arraignment court, Division conditions of our municipal arraignment courts. 50, there are more than 400 arraignments a day. The increasing volume of cases now scheduled for This means that with a court day from 9:00 to hearing in Los Angeles arraignment courts has 12:00 a.m. and from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m., with two raised many serious problems concerning the ten-minute recesses, there are only 220 minutes to quality of law enforcement and the quality of handle these cases, or an average of 51 seconds per justice meted out in these courts. case. Of course, many traffic citations involve Recently, community leaders and the news- routine matters, and in such cases a minimum of papers have been clamoring for stiffer penalties time is required to arraign the defendant, receive and greater individual attention on the part of the plea, and impose sentence. But it should be judges in cases involving vice, narcotics, drunk remembered that the Los Angeles Municipal driving, traffic safety, and delinquent parents. Court does not require a defendant to make a In excess of 1,000 cases involving these problems personal appearance in traffic court until he has are brought before municipal arraignment courts received citations for three moving violations every day. During March, 1961, there were within a 12 month period, or has been cited for an 27,442 arraignments in the Los Angeles judicial extremely high rate of speed, or some other more District. Arraignment courts must assume a flagrant type of alleged violation. By the time a major share of the responsibility in these fields defendant is obliged to make a personal appearance because in excess of 80 per cent of the defendants in a traffic court, he has developed a pattern of plead guilty at the time of arraignment. unsafe driving habits quite unlike the average The tremendous volume of cases which must driver. (According to a survey of .the National pass through these arraignment courts in a given Safety Council, the average driver receives an period of time necessarily limits the opportunity average of three traffic citations in ten years.) of the judge, city attorney, and the defendant or The appearance of a citizen in traffic court his attorney to give more than perfunctory should be a meaningful experience. Defendants attention to any individual case. Frequently, it should not get the impression that the purpose of is physically impossible for the deputy city at- the appearance is to shepherd them in lines to torney to know anything about the details of the the cashier's window. Each case should receive ,charge, the background of the defendant, or his individual attention from the judge, the deputy record. As a result, both the quality of law en- city attorney, and the defendant or his counsel. forcement and the rights of the defendants are Under the present physical conditions this is made to suffer. Police officers and complaining impossible. witnesses often feel that their case has not re- In a study of "California Traffic Law Adminis- ceived proper attention. In many cases, defendants tration," the authors state: enter a plea without any conception or under- "It is dear that the average traffic court is ill standing of the law. Often, the defendant pleads equipped to handle the pressure traffic viola- guilty "to get it over with." Under such con- tions place upon it.... This pressure, as well ditions, remedial or beneficial results to the as the factual simplicity and general minor community or the defendant are only incidental. character of the offense, has motivated the use * Judge of the Superior Court of the State of Calif- of a simplified procedure. But considering the ornia, Los Angles County. important part played by procedure in our COMMENTS AND RESEARCH REPORTS [Vol. 53 system of justice such a simplification could shepherded ahead by the bailiffs. Under such constitute the denial of fair trial. This danger is physi l conditions, the deputy city attorney and intensified by the fact that appeals from traffic the defendant are primarily concerned with a convictions are so rare that in effect the traffic quick disposition of the case. By the time the court is a court of last resort. defendant appears before the judge, frequently ".... the traffic court ... does not adequately his only objective is to get out of the courtroom as promote traffic safety because it fails to deal fast as possible. Like assembly line workers in a efectively with the convicted violator .... factory, all parties operate under a climate which Adequate treatment directly affects traffic makes it appear that nothing may be permitted to safety through deterrence of future violations."' interfere with the smooth operation of the line. (Emphasis supplied.) Under such conditions, it is possible that defend- In commenting upon the traffic courts, Associate ants plead guilty without adequate knowledge of Justice Tom Clark, of the United States Supreme the charges against them, or sufficient information Court, has stated: concerning the specific counts in a complaint, or "Those who are charged, or who go into our even the number of counts in the complaint. traffic courts not being charged but just as A plea of guilty under such circumstances does visitors, see in action perhaps the only court not create respect for the law enforcement process. they know anything about. The condition of It certainly does not create a climate for the that-courtroom, the manner in which its pro- education of the defendants. cedures are carried out, the demeanor of the judge and the attaches of the court, the method TsrE IMIPORTANCE Or LAW ENFORCEMENT in which the court is carried on, and the time, IN MUNICIPAL COURTS perhaps, one has to wait in order to have his In the field of general criminal law, a larger case called, all these things are impressed number of defendants with felony records appear indelibly upon those people who come and sit in Division 59 than in any other court in Los in that courtroom .... There can be no more Angeles County. "The minor offense is often a important court in this whole land than the prelude to a major crime. While usually only the traffic courts .... Here is where respect or more violent or vicious crimes make the headlines, disrespect for law, for order, for the courts, and the so-called 'petty' offenders or misdemeanants for government is fostered." are also a serious problem and worthy of public concern. The minor offense of today PHrYSICAL CONDITIONS IN ARRAIGNMENT may very well be the prelude to a major offense. ' 2 COURTS Frequently, crimes of violence or crimes in- The physical conditions in Los Angeles volving the use of concealed and deadly weapons, Municipal arraignment courts are not conducive are reduced from felonies. In many of these cases, to either justice or individual attention. In defendants who have been involved in an at- Divisions 50, 58, and 59, defendants are informed tempted robbery, rape, or stabbing are more than of their constitutional rights in crowds ranging in happy to plead guilty to a misdemeanor. size from 100 to 300 defendants. In Divisions 58 Although narcotic addiction cases are treated as and 59, there are no seats available for the de- misdemeanors, the confirmed narcotic addict fendants, and they are crowded into a small space usually has a long felony record to support his -between the counsel table and the courtroom habit. The illegal use of dangerous drugs is fre- seats, in conditions similar to those of New Yorkers quently the beginning of a habit which will lead crowded into a subway during the rush hour. to heroin and other narcotic use and addiction, After defendants are informed of their consti- and later felony appearances for other crimes tutional rights, to facilitate the arraignment committed for the support of the habit. process, bailiffs are obliged to line up the de- Delinquent fathers who fail to support their fendants in long lines, blocking up the aisles of the families and neglectful parents are prosecuted for courtroom. As the names of individual defendants conduct which endangers the welfare of children are called off, each defendant moves up in the line, or permits child delinquency. Husbands are I California Traffic Law Administration, 12 STAN. L. 2J. Edgar Hoover, The Minor Offense-Prdnde to a REv. 388, 388-89 (1960). Major Crime? 1 MUNIC. CT. REv. 6 (1961). 19621 COMMENTS AND RESEARCH REPORTS prosecuted for wife beating under misdemeanor cluding his favorite manner of spending his battery charges. The disposition of cases involving leisure hours." 3 the family relationship is important to the con- I am aware of the argument that added atten- tinuance of the marriage and the well-being of the tion to the record and background of each de- home and the children.