Pa. jurists' focus: Fixing city courts

State Supreme Court Justice Seamus P. McCaffery has begun meeting with top Philadelphia judges, court administrators, and the district attorney to implement an ambitious reform agenda for the city's troubled criminal justice system.

McCaffery, acting at the behest of Chief Justice Ronald D. Castille, said the Supreme Court would require more accountability from the city courts, including new and detailed analysis of conviction rates, and an explanation of why so many cases collapse.

"I want reform," said McCaffery, a former Philadelphia judge. "The court needs it, and the citizens deserve it."

The high court's intervention comes in response to an Inquirer series that found the city courts in crisis - with low conviction rates, widespread witness fear, a massive fugitive problem, and a bail system in disarray.

McCaffery said each of those failings would be a focus of the reform effort.

"I want it all addressed," he said. "I want a full proposal for change."

In an interview, McCaffery laid out the broad framework of a reform plan and sketched out a series of specific initiatives. He said he would direct the courts to:

Hire a consulting firm to dig deeply into why the Philadelphia courts have the nation's lowest felony conviction rate. The Inquirer's data analysis showed that nearly two-thirds of all defendants charged with violent crimes in Philadelphia escaped conviction on all charges.

Analyze the system's Municipal Court to find out why so many cases fail at that initial level. Of cases that end without a conviction, 82 percent fall apart in Municipal Court, The Inquirer's analysis found.

Reexamine the court's dysfunctional bail system. As the newspaper reported, one out of three Philadelphia defendants skips at least one court hearing. With 47,000 defendants on the lam, the city has one of the nation's highest fugitive rates.

Bolster efforts to prevent and punish the widespread intimidation of victims and witnesses. McCaffery said one possible approach would be to create a witness-intimidation strike force, complete with a designated judge and assigned detectives, perhaps funded with federal money.

Not all changes would cost money, the justice said.

For example, he said, the high court would insist that Municipal Court judges streamline preliminary hearings and allow more hearsay testimony. That, he said, would spare victims and witnesses from having to appear in court so often.