Agenda

Return

C. 57

To:	Board of Supervisors
From:	David Twa, County Administrator
Date:	May 5, 2015

Contra

Costa

County

Subject:

Federal Grant - Smart Defense Initiative Answering Gideons Call Improving Public Defense Delivery Systems

APPROVE	OTHER
RECOMMENDATION OF CNTY ADMINISTRATOR	RECOMMENDATION OF BOARD COMMITTEE

Action of Board On: 05/05/2015

APPROVED AS RECOMMENDED

OTHER

Clerks Notes:

VOTE OF SUPERVISORS

AYE:

John Gioia, District I Supervisor
Candace Andersen, District II Supervisor
Mary N. Piepho, District III Supervisor
Karen Mitchoff, District IV Supervisor

ABSENT:

Federal D. Glover, District V Supervisor

Contact:

Robin Lipetzky, (925) 335-8035

I hereby certify that this is a true and correct copy of an action taken and entered on the minutes of the Board of Supervisors on the date shown.
ATTESTED: May 5, 2015
David Twa,

BY:	, Deputy

RECOMMENDATION(S):

APPROVE and AUTHORIZE the Public Defender, or designee, to apply for and accept a grant from the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs' Bureau of Justice Assistance, in an amount not to exceed $377,657 for a Misdemeanor Early Representation Program, to provide immediate representation for persons cited for misdemeanor offenses so as to reduce incarceration and other collateral consequences for indigent clients in Richmond, for the period October 1, 2015 through September 30, 2017.

FISCAL IMPACT:

$377,657, 100% Federal; No County match required. (CFDA 16.817)

BACKGROUND:

The Smart Defense Initiative, administered by Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), is part of BJA’s “Smart Suite” of criminal justice programs including Smart Pretrial, Smart Policing, Smart Supervision, and Smart Prosecution. BJA established the Smart Suite over 5 years ago with the creation of the Smart Policing Initiative. The Smart Suite supports criminal justice professionals in building evidence-based, data-driven criminal justice strategies that are effective, efficient, and economical. BJA’s smart programs represent a strategic approach that brings more “science” into criminal justice operations by leveraging innovative applications of analysis, technology, and evidence-based practices.

Contra Costa County's Misdemeanor Early Representation Program (MERP) is designed to provide immediate representation for persons cited for misdemeanor offenses so as to reduce incarceration and other collateral consequences -- such as warrants, arrests, additional criminal charges stemming from failures to appear, and time spent in-custody -- for indigent clients in the urban city of Richmond, CA. A partnership of the Contra Costa County Office of the Public Defender, the Richmond Police Department, and the West Contra Costa Reentry Resource Center, MERP will ensure that, at the time of citation, the officer making an arrest will provide printed information, in English and Spanish, advising individuals of the availability of immediate legal representation provided by MERP, which will be housed at the community-based Reentry Center.

Providing pre-arraignment legal advice and representation, MERP staff will track the progress of a client’s criminal process, consistently and effectively notify the client of future court dates, advocate with the District Attorney’s office for pre-filing disposition options, conduct investigation and other case preparation, and keep the client informed of all aspects of the judicial process. This early representation will be provided alongside multiple, co-located social services (drug and alcohol services, mental health care, financial planning and public benefits, family support and reunification services, probation services, and peer mentoring) to support client success, both during and after the judicial process. MERP is intended to reduce the number of failures to appear (FTA) for indigent persons cite-released on misdemeanor offenses; reduce the number of arrest warrants issued o indigent persons, due to FTA at arraignment; reduce the burdens imposed by FTAs on justice system partners; eliminate or mitigate the collateral consequences of custodial arrests; and improve outcomes for indigent persons charged with misdemeanor offenses by providing early case evaluation, case investigation, and intervention with the District Attorney's Office prior to first court appearance.

The Office of the Public Defender will partner with research partner, subgrantee the Justice Management Institute, which will assist with program design and will track multiple data points to evaluate program success.

The deadline for submission was April 22, 2015, and the Public Defender succeeded in submitting an application on time.

CONSEQUENCE OF NEGATIVE ACTION:

If the County does not apply for this grant, it will not be eligible to receive up to $377,657 in federal funds for the Misdemeanor Early Representation Program.