Criminal Justice Coordinating Council Committee

10.08.20 Draft Minutes (214 KB)

10.08.20 APPROVED Minutes (171 KB)

CRIMINAL JUSTICE COORDINATING COUNCIL

West Square Building, Room 213

505 Broadway Street,

Baraboo, WI  53913                                                                                        Thursday, October 8, 2020

Members Present: Judge Screnock, Tim McCumber, Michael Albrecht, Patricia Rego, Dan Brattset, Annette Kuhlmann, Dave Bretl, Chief Cummings, Thomas Dorner, Captain Lange, Judge Joanne Jones, and Cathy Warwick

Members Absent: Jay Englund/Kara Rolf, Brian Basham, Leonie Dolch, Noelle Sapiro, Delmar Scanlon, and Elizabeth La Broscian

Others Present: Kristen Ederer, Annette Abel, Rick Spoentgen, Ben Miller, and Amanda Hanson

Call Meeting to Order:

The meeting was called to order and certification of Open Meeting compliance was given at 3:31 p.m.

Adopt Agenda:

Motion by Rego, second Lange to adopt agenda. Motion carried.

Minutes:

Motion to approve of the November 2019 minutes by McCumber, second by Dorner to approve minutes. Motion carried.

Motion to approve of the August 2020 minutes by McCumber, second by Kuhlman to approve minutes. Motion carried

Public Comment:

None

Communications:

Judge Screnock contacted Bill Harn about joining CJCC.  Bill would like to think about it and the Judge will confirm with him by the next meeting.  Dave Bretl shared that JDS has officially transferred from Public Health. Amanda Hanson will be the interim Programs Manager for JDS. Judge Jones stated that hearings and wellness court have continued through COVID.

Monthly Justice, Diversion, and Support Report/ JDS Presentation

Amanda is happy to take on this new role. She shared her background and data of current and previous court participants. They are currently taking brochures to attorney and law enforcement offices to get more referrals. Dorner asked if Amanda will be overseeing all three programs. Amanda responded with yes and that she will be meeting with her team bi-weekly to iron out issues. She also shared this has been a tough year with Gina leaving and COVID.  She will to continue to work on going through the policy manual.

Update from Each Agency Represented on the Counsel- Past/Future COVID Impacts:

Ho-Chunk Nation: Impact financially due to casino closures and courthouse closures. Hearings are still happening virtually. There has been a cut back on social service agencies. Everything has been cut back to bare bones, however they are considering opening the courthouse with COVID protections. So far COVID has reached 16 counties. Trial courts are almost ready to start Peacemakers Court. 

DHS: Continues to provide services virtually and seeing clients socially distanced indoors and outdoors. Staff has had to adapt since things take twice as long. Child mental health is a big issue. It is difficult to determine truancy in person or virtually and there is concern that some cases are being missed. 

DA:  Truancy is a big issue and requires through complicated Law Enforcement investigation. Schools are trying to investigate, but it’s complicated due to the pandemic. Generally, juvenile cases have plummeted.  The grants through the DA’s office will be expiring next year. They have been advocating to keep the full-time attorney positions through the end of the year. Caseloads for the attorneys have gone up. The pandemic has forced them to explore alternatives and do things better. They continue to look for jury trial plans since this has not worked with COVID.  Everything is piling up and will make 2021 a busy year.

Captain Lange: Zoom appearances have been bumpy due to poor connections. They are looking for grant funding to improve this issue.  The county has seen an increase in suicides from 8% to now almost 12%. Staff are exhausted and there is a lot more they have to do that they did not do before COVID happened. They initially closed Huber so people could not go in or out. They are now using “clean pods” for people who stay in and “dirty pods” for those who are leaving the jail. It has been difficult for the inmates to have to isolate for the 14 days.  With jury trials being delated inmates have had to remain in jail for a longer period of time. They are concerned with the upcoming flu/cold season.  They have made changes to their booking process to prevent the spread of COVID. They have tried their best to keep things clean and avoid an outbreak.  They will continue to minimize jail transfers and movement to states that have higher numbers. The use of rapid tests would up efficiency.   

Brian Basham: Changes are happening statewide. Judge Screnock read Brian’s changes that have been made due to COVID.  Please see Brian’s notes for all changes given.   

Chief Cummings:  Theft has spiked in the last few months. There is an increase in drug use.  Employees are getting tired and struggling with needing to be home more since children are learning virtually. Online training and electronic paperwork has gone well. Domestic abuse is up and people are more irritated. It is difficult for people to find a balance and resources for help.

Judge Screnock:  All three judges continue to use remote systems for court. Judge Screnock has been pleased with Zoom and the use of broadcasting live on YouTube. He tries to be mindful of schedules and how this will impact the jail staff and attorneys. His goal is to resolve cases and not have them stall out. There will likely not be any jury trials until 2021.

Cathy Warwik: There have been 174 new cases and the fifth Sauk County resident passed away due to COVID. She has never seen this level of angst and staff are exhausted with many working seven days a week.  Tim will be leaving October 14 and Cathy is working to keep things moving forward. Many of the ICU’s are already at 50 to 60 % capacity.  Cathy stressed the importance of flu shots, social distancing and wearing a mask to help prevent the spread.

Dave Bretl: Dave would like to thank everyone for stepping up and helping during these times.

Tim McCumber: Tim would like to thank everyone for all the extra time and effort that has been put in. He also thanked Amanda for stepping in as interim of Justice, Diversion, and Support.

Committees Discussion:  Please email Judge Screnock or Amanda Hanson if you would like to join or switch your committee.   

Next Meeting Date and agenda items:

December 10 at 3:30 p.m. in County Board Room

Agenda Items:

October 8, 2020 Minutes (Approve)

Adjournment:

Motion to adjourn by Brattset, second by Warwick. Motion carried.

Meeting adjourned at 5:11 p.m.

Respectfully Submitted:

Annette Abel