Local Sheriff and District Attorney Discuss Problems with the State’s Criminal Justice System
Across the nation, many cities have seen an increase in serious crimes. Most experts will tell you that the number of repeat offenders in big cities has also increased.
The criminal justice system has received criticism for new lenient policies that found people getting released from the prison system sooner. During the pandemic, prisoners were getting released at a much higher rate and some were not being jailed when they would have been.
Many experts have said that the number of repeat criminals is on the rise as court and prison systems are not keeping convicted criminals locked up as long as they used to. Some have even pointed out that the increase in crime is worse in cities that are run by Democratic mayors.
In Denver, the police chief and business owners have spoken out about the increase in dangerous crimes in the city. According to an article published in August by reporter Katie Spence of The Maverick Observer, Colorado has seen an increase in population and crimes over the last decade, but the number of criminals being prosecuted and incarcerated has dropped in the last several years.
Locally, prosecutors and law enforcement officials alike have spoken out about the problem. Colorado’s 4th Judicial District Attorney Michael Allen and Teller County Sheriff Jason Mikesell agree that the criminal justice system is softer on criminals than it used to be. And both of them are saying that high recidivism rates are causing big problems in local communities.
Springs Area District Attorney Cites Numerous Causes of the Changing Criminal Reform System
Allen, who serves as the district attorney for both El Paso and Teller Counties, said that he is seeing criminals getting more chances to re-offend. “Basically what we see is that people are being let out of custody a lot quicker than they had been before,” Allen said. “So, if you get a career criminal, they will pick up several cases one right after the other. Which obviously has an impact on the community. It creates more victims and there is an economic impact as well. It also clogs up court dockets so you will have more cases than you should because the person has racked up so many cases that are all pending at the same time.”
When asked what has caused this recent change in the criminal reform system, Allen said that it has been a “slippage across the whole system.” Allen said that both judges and the state’s department of corrections have contributed to the issue.
“It is just a systemwide, concerted effort to reduce how much time people are spending in custody,” Allen explained. “Which can be good if it’s the right kind of person. But if it’s somebody that has a career criminal history, then maybe it’s not the best thing to give them low bonds or push them out of custody sooner than they otherwise could have. Because that means that they have criminalistic thinking and they are going to re-victimize other people in the city and have a bigger impact than they should have.”
The criminal justice issues seem to have gotten worse in the last few years, but Allen says that it was a combination of things that brought the state to where it is today with its criminal reform system. “It’s almost like the old saying that goes, ‘If you put a frog in a pot of water and turn up the heat, they don’t realize it until the water is boiling,’” Allen stated. “The slippage toward the reality we are facing now has been happening gradually over time.”
Local Sheriff says Repeating Criminals Make it Hard Keep Communities Safe
In Teller County, Sheriff Mikesell recently produced a podcast that talks about the struggles law enforcement have seen when it comes to keeping residents safe. The sheriff said that one of the biggest issues he is seeing is unusually high recidivism rates. He said that issues with repeat offenders are not being documented and are being “mopped under the rug,” and not being discussed.
“What has happened in recent years is that the state has gone to a new model, that model is that we are going to rehabilitate everyone,” Mikesell said. “They have closed a lot of prisons and the probation officers and parole officers do not violate people like they used to.”
The sheriff gave several examples of issues surrounding repeat criminals. “I have a family that is in fear of their life in the county,” Mikesell said. “A person had threatened them with a firearm and threatened to beat them up. They got a restraining order for him. He then shoots at the police and gets convicted. He goes to Denver and he ends up in a halfway house. This person had multiple offenses prior to this also. He goes to the halfway house and then they send the victim a letter saying, ‘Sorry, this person has absconded from us and we don’t know where he is at.’ So, now they are in fear for their lives because they think this person is coming back after them. And what bothers me the most is all I can get from the state is, ‘Well, we are looking for him.’”
What are Possible Solutions to the Problem?
Allen said that one of the major issues is that voters are not paying attention to the criminal justice bills getting signed into law at the state level. He explained that new laws that lower criminal penalties have been happening all across the board.
“I really encourage people to especially pay attention to the criminal justice bills that are going through the state legislature,” the district attorney said. “What we are seeing in the last several years is an effort by those that have power and controlling interests in the state legislature and governor’s office to not necessarily listen to public safety professionals like district attorneys, sheriffs, and chiefs of police. Instead of listening to those people who are actually tasked with upholding public safety, they listen more to public defenders, the ACLU, and different advocacy groups that are looking for ways to reform the criminal justice system.”
Mikesell said that people need to exercise their Second Amendment rights because it is getting tougher and tougher for law enforcement agencies to do their jobs. “We respond very quickly to any crime that is occurring,” the sheriff said. “But here is what I need to tell you as a community, you need to arm yourselves. You need to understand that law enforcement is not going to get to your door when it happens. We just can’t. There are not enough of us anymore to do those things. The community has to help themselves and make themselves safe. I think that is the key.”
