The presiding judge at Cleveland Municipal Court says the county prosecutor is being more strict with city residents charged with drug-related crimes than suburban prosecutors are with their own residents. And he’s concerned that’s leading to racial disparities in criminal cases. Ideastream’s Mark Urycki reports.
Cleveland City Council’s Safety Committee is holding hearings on racial disparity in the justice system. Judge Ronald Adrine told the committee that the city’s special drug court has been able to reduce felony charges down to misdemeanors for people charged with drug-related crimes.
They dismiss charges for defendants who complete the drug treatment program. Suburban prosecutors often send defendants to that court. But the county prosecutor makes that decision in Cleveland and gives fewer people that option.
“My only concern about the way things are handled now is we are not able to get as many people from the city – who are predominately African American- into that same program so they can get the same benefit at the end.”
The head of the drug court, Judge Lauren C. Moore, said the county prosecutor’s staff often refuse to refer defendants if they have prior convictions. Judge Adrine worries that Blacks may be suffering disproportionately. He noted that Cleveland was once the only city in Ohio that made it a felony to possess crack cocaine residue.
“A generation of people actually got felony convictions because of that.”
Most of the people referred to Cleveland’s drug court are suburbanites and heroin use is the most common offense. Rocky River refers the largest share -44%. Safety committee chairman Matt Zone says he will invite county officials to his next forum on racial disparity.
Cleveland Municipal Court has a majority of African American judges and Adrine said they must all be careful not to give in to their own biases. He in particular doesn’t like people to come to his courtroom wearing what he called “the uniform.”
“Which is like a 5X t-shirt, jeans that have 5 inches of material down at the ankle and the seat of the pants hanging down to the individual’s knees. When I see that that it causes me to have an immediate negative, visceral reaction.”
Adrine says he and others in the justice system have to work to discount any negative thought and focus on the facts of the case.