Rollins plan needs rethink
Keeping young people out of jail is a laudable and necessary goal but not at the expense of the community at large.
There is cause for concern that Suffolk District Attorney candidate Rachael Rollins’ “decline to prosecute” list might put the public at risk if it means that dangerous offenders are on the streets instead of in jails.
Rollins, who beat four candidates in the Democratic primary for DA, lists 15 criminal offenses on her campaign website that she says she won’t prosecute if elected — including resisting arrest, drug dealing, larceny under $250 and trespassing.
On a recent appearance on Fox News she said, “I believe that we are spending too much time on petty crimes that are clogging up our system and costing us more money.”
There is concern among some in the law enforcement community, including Michael Leary of the Boston Police Patrolmen’s Union. Leary fears that the crime rate in Boston will increase.
“I think that the quality of life is going to go down because she’s not going to prosecute these people and they are going to keep doing it.
“I hope that she would rethink her thought process on prosecuting these crimes. If she’s not going to prosecute it, it’s going to make our job harder.”
Leary continued, “If you’re doing crime, you have to be held accountable for the crimes you do. If you’re out there doing bad things then unfortunately jail is the answer. That’s what jail is for, for people who break the law.”
In a statement, Rollins told the Herald: “Estimates show that it costs roughly $50,000 per year to house an inmate in the Suffolk County House of Correction . ... Many of the cases that cycle through the district courts in Suffolk County are active for at least 6 to 12 months prior to any disposition. This is a costly financial proposition for the taxpayers of Massachusetts. Money is diverted from services to sentences.
“More important, there is a cost to society. The consequences of a criminal record are far more significant than many people realize. When someone spends even a single night in jail pretrial they can lose their job — leading to a spiral of unintended consequences. If someone does end up with a CORI for a bad choice, it makes it significantly harder for them to obtain jobs or secure housing — often resulting in a downward spiral — everyone loses.”
There is no doubt that Rollins is taking a progressive approach to criminal justice reform and that is understandable. Too many young men — especially blacks on percentage — enter the criminal justice system very young and never have a real chance to get untethered from it.
People make mistakes but that does not always necessitate a life sentence. Who among us was the same person at 19 as we were at 29 or 39?
Still, there is no good, moral reason to unleash dangerous criminals upon a community and so Rachael Rollins should have substantive conversations with law enforcement officials on the matter.