5-4-2011 Pennsylvania:
Allegheny County court officials plan to announce a new specialty court today that will focus on intense management of sex offenders' cases.
The program will require those convicted of Megan's Law offenses to undergo psychiatric assessments and periodically report in person to judges that they are complying with the terms of their treatment, Allegheny County court administrator Ray Billotte said.
The new court is modeled after a similar program in Buffalo, N.Y., officials said, and will have a budget of approximately $100,000 for the year.
"We're looking at this in terms of public safety," Billotte said. "The goal is to hold defendants accountable, improve public safety and reduce recidivism. We should never stop pursuing those goals whatever the economic climate might be."
The creation of the court is taking place on the heels of an announcement last month from state Supreme Court Justice Ronald Castille, who warned of a $47 million hole in the judiciary budget for the upcoming year.
Billotte said costs of the program will come from within the existing local courts budget and will not require additional money from the state or county. Including costs for juvenile placements, Allegheny County courts have an annual budget of about $130 million, with about 60 percent funded from the state and federal government, Billotte said.
A reduction in recidivism would save money in the long term, he said.
Common Pleas Judge Jill Rangos, who will be one of three judges assigned to sex offender court, said the program would apply to those nonviolent sex offenders who otherwise would be eligible for probation.
"One of the principle objectives of a court is to reduce recidivism and protect the community from repeat offenders," Rangos said. "This does not mean that violent sex predators will be given probation and sent to treatment instead of being incarcerated."
Allegheny County has several specialty courts: drug, DUI, mental health and veterans' courts. ..Source.. by Bobby Kerlik
May 4, 2011
New court to handle cases of those convicted under Megan's Law
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2 comments:
This will be the next thoughtless chain reaction across the country as Megan's Law and residency restrictions were. They are planning the same thing in PA. One wonders if eventually these courts will function like Family Courts with almost unlimited power, where the Judges have flexibility not afforded to Judges in civil and criminal court, and operate largely behind closed doors, without record of their proceedings, and routinely ignore basic civil liberties and international human rights conventions.
They already are ignoring basic civil liberties, just look at the Adam Walsh act if you do not think so. The courts do not care about a sex offenders rights.
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