Wednesday, January 17, 2007
Chicago Daily Law Bulletin
by Stephanie Potter

County County State's Attorney Richard A. Devine says his office stands to lose at least 75 prosecutors under a proposed $3 billion county budget released Tuesday.
Devine said he had already anticipated losing 75 prosecutors and 75 other staff members, including investigators, but will likely have to cut 50 or 60 more positions.
''We still have more to do based on what we heard today,'' Devine said after listening to Cook County Board President Todd Stroger's budget address. Stroger gave the address at the County Building, 118 N. Clark St.
Also set to be lost is the office's drug diversion program, which Devine said could mean higher jail populations and a clogged court system.
''Are we going to get back to a very bare bones … system, or are we going to keep track of some of these more thoughtful programs like drug diversion?'' Devine asked. ''If we're not, it's penny-wise and pound-foolish.''
The county board has until Feb. 28 to pass a budget for 2007. Stroger had pressed officeholders to cut their budgets by 17 percent to make up a projected $500 million shortfall. About $150 million of that shortfall will be recovered by restructuring debt, Stroger said Tuesday.
Stroger's proposed budget includes a total of $1.072 billion for public safety, down $31 million from last year.
Public safety includes the state's attorney, chief judge, public defender, clerk of the court and other offices.
Stroger said offices would have to focus on their core missions to balance the budget and allow for required spending, such as the court-mandated hiring of additional jail guards.
Stroger had pledged not to increase taxes and did so again on Tuesday.
''The biggest contributor to the massive shortfall we now face is that for too long, Cook County avoided making the tough spending decisions,'' Stroger said.
Devine said he would continue to fight for more staff and for community programs, like the drug diversion program. He is scheduled to go before the county board's finance committee for a budget hearing on January 26.
Stroger recommended the state's attorney's office have a 2007 general fund budget of $86.6 million, a $9.6 million decrease from last year.
While Devine publicly argued against the budget cuts, Cook County Public Defender Edwin A. Burnette agreed in December to make the cuts Stroger asked for. At the time, Burnette said his office could lose 50 attorneys and 25 other staff members.
Burnette also proposed unpaid furloughs for attorneys and a four-day work week for some employees. He also said law firms that do business with the county would be asked to take cases on a pro bono basis.
Burnette's office, which had a budget of nearly $53 million last year, would see a $9.7 million cut if Stroger's budget recommendation is approved.
The budget recommendation for the public defender's office includes a recommendation of 686 full-time positions, down from 763 last year. The vice president of the public defender's union local, Kulmeet S. Galhotra, said in a telephone interview that the office is ''already very, very understaffed as it is.''
''This seems to be a continuation of the trend,'' Galhotra said.
Brendan P. Max, an assistant public defender and executive-at-large for the union, AFSCME Local 3315, said caseloads are already above recommended levels. Fewer attorneys will mean defendants will spend more time in jail awaiting trial, he said. Max predicted that the $10 million proposed cut from his office would ''be gobbled up in jail expenses for housing inmates longer.''
Burnette could not be reached for comment about the budget Tuesday.
Clerk of the Circuit Court Dorothy A. Brown said she didn't suggest any staff cuts to meet the budget cuts. Instead, she proposed furlough days and a reduction in vacant positions, as well as new sources of revenue, Brown said.
Stroger proposed a general fund budget of $78.3 million for Brown's office for 2007, down $5.1 million from last year.
Offices under the control of Chief Judge Timothy C. Evans, which include the Office of the Cook County Public Guardian and the adult and juvenile probation departments, would also see general fund cuts of a combined $15.4 million. The bulk of those cuts are set to come from the probation departments and the office of the chief judge.
Evans said Tuesday that he was still reviewing the budget proposal released by Stroger.
''From my point of view we will continue to offer the public a first-class judiciary to resolve disputes amicably and expeditiously,'' Evans said.