Violent crime straining busy court system

It is one of the most pressing issues facing the court system, a problem several stakeholders say is probably impossible to solve. And statistically, it appears to be getting worse.

T h e n u m b e r of violent crimes committed last year in Lake Havasu City rose by more than 32 percent, an alarming increase that officials say will further overwhelm an already overburdened court system.

The strain will be felt everywhere, from prosecutors and public defenders to victims and their families — even taxpayers.

The impact is perhaps most evident in the court docket. Court records show that the number of criminal cases filed in Mohave County Superior Court increased 60 percent from 1990 to 2005. Though criminal filings fell slightly in 2007, officials expect the number to rise over the next several years.

Mohave County Attorney Matt Smith said as more cases come in, attorneys are becoming increasingly stretched thin. He acknowledged that the resulting logjam has put more pressure on attorneys to hammer out plea agreements for cases that would normally go to trial.

“There is an increased pressure on them to resolve cases through plea agreements. There are only so many resources. … You can only try a certain number of cases,” Smith said.

It’s a delicate balance: Prosecutors don’t want to appear soft on crime, yet they also have to be realists and recognize there are dozens of new cases coming in every week.

Adding to the problem is the county’s hiring freeze, preventing Smith from adding more attorneys to help ease his office’s caseload.

“That’s what’s really hurting the system,” he said. Until the hiring freeze is lifted, “it’s going to continue to be a problem.”

Violent crimes tend to be more time consuming. Proportionally, attorneys spend more time on a murder or rape case than any other type of case, said Dana Hlavac, head of the Mohave County public defender’s office.

Though the number of violent crimes in Lake Havasu City rose by 32 percent, it may become more like a 40 percent increase in work, Hlavac said.

He believes that if the trend continues and violent crime continues to rise, the entire system will have to expand. New prisons will have to be built to handle the overflow. More judges and attorneys will have to be added to the county’s budget. In the end, taxpayers will be stuck holding the bill.

“I don’t think there’s any question” that the court system will have to expand, Hlavac said. “The difficulty we’re facing is the need continues to grow but the ability to support that need isn’t.”

“It’s going to be a very tough formula to solve,” he added. “You can’t grow those resources without supporting those resources.”

The solution? Hlavac believes the system is too reactionary; it needs to be more proactive. He said there is too much focus on prisons and locking people up.

It’s more visceral than that. Officials need to take it a step further, he said. More emphasis should be placed on educational and community outreach programs for at-risk youth.

“We spend so much time looking at it once it happens,” Hlavac said. “It’s not enough. We need more.”

“Money is not the answer. It’s about caring about these kids and reaching out,” he added. “If we’re really going to be solving these problems long term, we need to be looking at that side of the equation.”

You may contact the reporter at raap@havasunews.com.

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