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Universal screening planned for Milwaukee County (UPDATE)

By: Jack Zemlicka, [email protected]//July 15, 2011//

Universal screening planned for Milwaukee County (UPDATE)

By: Jack Zemlicka, [email protected]//July 15, 2011//

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A new program designed to streamline pre-trial bail recommendations for criminal defendants is set to roll out later this summer in Milwaukee County.

Universal screening is based on 11 questions posed to alleged offenders to help assess risk and determine appropriate bail or monitoring.

The program is part of a movement toward more evidence-based pre-trial assessment methods in criminal cases, rather than personal experience, said Felony Court Judge Rick Sankovitz.

“This is an actuarial instrument based on real experience and thousands of cases,” he said. “It’s more than any one prosecutor, defense attorney, commissioner or judge can say they’ve had on a given case.”

Milwaukee County’s budget includes $250,000 for universal screening and the Milwaukee County Board approved an additional $100,000 grant June 23 from the State Office of Justice Assistance for the program.

The bulk of the money will go toward hiring screeners to administer the questions to defendants and check the validity of their answers, Sankovitz said.

But the program will cost about $1 million annually to operate, according to Chief Judge Jeff Kremers, a longtime advocate of universal screening.

Last month, Kremers applied for a federal grant to cover the cost of the program and also requested money in the next Milwaukee County budget.

“The issue is start-up funds,” he said. “If this program works correctly, it should save more than $1 million in jail beds and ultimately pay for itself.”

Ideally, Sankovitz said, screening will take place after prosecutors review cases and recommend charges. The goal is to optimize county resources and assess pre-trial restrictions on those that pose the highest risk.

Yet to be finalized are the risk classification ranges, or “praxis” to determine bail and supervision limits dependent upon a defendant’s score on the screening test.

Each question has a point total attached and higher totals would theoretically warrant a higher level of supervision or bail.

Questions range from asking whether an individual has two or more prior convictions (one point), to whether the person has been employed within the last two years (two points).

“It’s a matter of breaking those down and determining how many points a person can get and still be in the lowest risk level,” Sankovitz said.

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