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State law plagues Newsom's Tenderloin court
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SAN FRANCISCO (Map, News) - Mayor Gavin Newsom’s plan to create a special court in the Tenderloin to handle low-level offenses committed in that area faces several challenges, including funding, location and a state law that prevents using the new program to deal with infractions such as aggressive panhandling.
On Tuesday, Newsom, Public Defender Jeff Adachi and other city officials participated in a panel discussion on his Community Justice Center project held for San Francisco Chamber of Commerce members.
Before the meeting, Newsom told The Examiner that a recent decision by the Board of Supervisors to reduce funding for the Tenderloin court from $750,000 to $500,000 was not going to stall implementation of the program.
“Clearly it will slow down the process a little,” Newsom said. “You do a little less than you wanted to do, you look to see what money you can find elsewhere, you look privately. … We’ll just have to be even more creative.”
Newsom, along with District Attorney Kamala Harris, has promoted the Community Justice Center program as a way of dealing with low-level criminal behavior such as drug use, theft, prostitution, auto break-ins and other “quality of life” offenses. San Francisco’s program would be partially modeled after New York City’s Midtown Community Court, which requires most defendants to perform community service or attend a social service group within 24 hours of arraignment.
One of the obstacles San Francisco faces is that state law dictates that all infractions — crimes such as urinating in public, sleeping on the sidewalk or aggressive panhandling — can only carry a penalty fine. That means a police officer cannot take a person committing such a crime into custody and bring them before the Community Justice Center judge. Nor can The City use the threat of incarceration to encourage those committing infractions to seek services.
“An infraction ticket goes to traffic court,” Julian Potter, Newsom’s deputy chief of staff, told Chamber members. “It’s something we can’t fix in the short term.”
Another upfront problem is finding an appropriate, permanent space in the Tenderloin neighborhood that has all the amenities of a court building.
The City is considering using a temporary space outside the Tenderloin — in the current Hall of Justice or within city-owned land at 150 Otis St. — to get the program jump-started, Potter said.
The City is conducting community meetings to get feedback on the Community Justice Center program, Potter said, and expects to have a draft plan by the end of the summer or early fall.
Comments from Examiner Readers
3:03 PM MST on Mon., Jul. 16, 2007 re: "State law plagues Newsom's Tenderloin court"
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3:20 PM MST on Wed., Jul. 11, 2007
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Examiner Reader said:
Most people get their facts wrong about the Community Court. They are not going to fine someone who cannot pay but they will have to do community service
141 agree | 130 disagree
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Examiner Reader said:
Having lived in the Tenderloin for 15 years or more, I've seen this area transform to a great degree. I've also seen and know first hand, the racial bias and profiling from the Tenderloin, Sub-station; located at Eddy and Jones streets. I personally distrust police, period; especially caucasian and hispanic ones. I had an experience in September of last year, where a friend and I were customers in a local store. I made a purchase and gave my friend some money. This known drug dealer in line behind me and asked "If he could borrow some money?" I took it as a joke. He made a purchase of a $1.00 litre of coca cola, then walked out of the store. I went around the block and before I could get to the front of my building; this guy attacks me, physically assualted me, claiming my friend and I stole his dope. However, when we got to the police station he claimed we stole $50.00 he dropped. Because he knew every officer, I was treated like the perpertrator. So, I say, "Hell No
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Examiner Reader said:
I may not agree with Community Court but in other places around the world, they have such a system that does not hold up the court system where agendas that really need to be done can be done quickly without getting stuck through political loop holes. If it has worked in other places, why can't we try it here.
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Examiner Reader said:
The Community Court idea is just a re-election press release for Newsom. First of all, as he should know, the homeless people are completely broke. So how do you fine someone who cannot pay? Second, the vast majority of the homeless people are mentally ill, yet Newsom cuts funding for mental health programs. So, he wants to penalize broke mentally ill people. Newsom, a confirmed alcoholic should also have his head examined. His mental illness is narcissism. Of course, he probably knows this already so this is a mute point.
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