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Conference Report: New York City's Criminal Courts Are We Achieving Justice?, Martha Rayner
Conference Report: New York City's Criminal Courts Are We Achieving Justice?, Martha Rayner
Fordham Urban Law Journal
On October 18, 2003, more than one hundred professionals from the five boroughs of New York City came together to identify, evaluate, and begin to solve some of the complex problems embedded in the culture, operations, and practice in New York City's Criminal Courts. The conference planners focused on five problems that have undermined the pursuit of justice in New York City’s Criminal Court system for decades. The first group, Arraignment Norms, Practices and Culture, targeted professionalism and justice at the first and often last court appearance for people arrested and charged with misdemeanor crimes in New York City. The …
The Adjudication Of Minor Offenses In New York City, Ian Weinstein
The Adjudication Of Minor Offenses In New York City, Ian Weinstein
Fordham Urban Law Journal
American criminal justice is founded on overcriminalization and discretion. Our legislatures have long criminalized much more conduct than can be effectively sanctioned. American police and prosecutors have been granted virtually unreviewable authority (discretion) to allocate investigative and prosecutorial resources. Minor crimes absorb the bulk of our ordinary, local enforcement efforts and there is an endless supply of minor crime, which may be pursued. With minor offenses, discretion is critical at all phases. This article argues that criminal courts, where ninety percent of all cases are heard, could benefit from reform. The author argues for the development of the record so …