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HomeMy WebLinkAboutResponse Budget Review Follow-Up 04-03-2020 Part 2 OFFICE OF THE PROSECUTING ATTORNEY County of Kaua‘i, State of Hawai‘i 3990 Ka‘ana Street, Suite 210, Līhu‘e, Hawai‘i 96766 808-241-1888 ~ FAX 808-241-1758 Victim/Witness Program 808-241-1898 or 800-668-5734 MEMORANDUM An Equal Opportunity Employer Justin F. Kollar Prosecuting Attorney Jennifer S. Winn First Deputy Rebecca Vogt Like Second Deputy Diana Gausepohl-White Victim/Witness Program Director TO: Arryl Kaneshiro, Council Chair FROM: Justin Kollar, Prosecuting Attorney DATE: April 7, 2020 SUBJECT: RESPONSE TO FISCAL YEAR 2020-2021 BUDGET FOLLOW-UP QUESTIONS Please see the following response to the Fiscal Year 2020-2021 Budget Follow- Up Questions Memo that was transmitted on April 6, 2020. Please note the following may be referenced in our responses: Item #1: The Human Resource Vacancy Report will address all vacancy & recruitment questions Item #2: Anticipated revision in the May 8th Supplemental 1. Please confirm that you have six (6) current vacancies (Position Numbers 43, 2820, 2823, 2831, 2828, and 2830). Department’s Response: See item #1 a. For all but Position Number 2830, describe (in more than a few words) the current recruitment effort for the remaining five (5) positions (Recruitment Status “Continuous” in the Vacancy Report of March 15, 2020). In your explanation, include the important details, such as when recruitment started, what stage the recruitment is currently in, and the earliest hire date and/or start date expected. Department’s Response: See item #1 b. For Position Number 2831, confirm that this position is being $0-funded and therefore being eliminated (after having been vacant for over 1,059 days, since 04/21/2017). Department’s Response: Position is grant funded under the Drug Nuisance Abatement Unit and is under continuous recruitment with intention to fill by June 1, 2020. c. For Position Number 2830 (HR has indicated simply “No Activity”): Department’s Response: Position No. 2830, Unclassified Investigator, is currently funded by the Department of the Attorney General’s Crime Prevention Justice Division grant for OPA’s Drug Nuisance Abatement Unit. This position is primarily responsible for investigating drug nuisance homes in the community and responding to community members. Grant funds will expire on September 30, 2020 and additional grant funding is not anticipated. The Department is not requesting to eliminate this position, which is currently filled by an employee on 89-day contract and grant funding will continue until September 30, 2020. ii. If Position Number 2830 is not being eliminated due to the loss of State funding (the Crime Prevention Justice Division grant) and another Special Investigator position is being proposed to be funded by the General Fund in order to retain the position in the Drug Nuisance Abatement Unit, please provide all the position information including position number; position name; budgeted amount; funding source; and whether the position is filled, vacant, or anticipated to become vacant. If vacant or anticipated to become vacant, describe (in more than a few words) the recruitment effort, including the date you initiated or intend to initiate recruitment, how long you anticipate recruitment taking, and the earliest hire date and/or start date expected. Department’s Response: The Department requests nine (9) months funding and related benefits from the FY 20-21 Operating Budget General Funds to maintain this position and continue to employ OPA Unclassified Investigator once grant funds expire. 2. The proposed budget lists $117,912 for Position Number E-2903 “DEPUTY PROSECUTING ATTORNEY” (page 30). Your Budget Narrative explains that this position is crucial to the prosecution of sex crimes, but grant funds for this position are expiring on June 30, 2020. a. Is there any way the work of this position could be absorbed by the existing team of Deputy Prosecuting Attorneys? Department’s Response: The DPA currently handling the prosecution of sex crimes has been with the Department since 2015. With his institutional knowledge, specialized training, and successful working relationship with KPD, it would be a huge detriment to the office’s prosecution of such crimes to simply have other DPA’s absorb this work, in addition to creating a hardship on DPA’s who are overloaded with new cases on a daily basis. b. Alternatively, is there a combination of other, lower-paying vacant positions that could be dollar ($1)-funded for FY 2021 in order to make existing funding available? Department’s Response: We are currently in recruitment to fill vacant legal clerical positions and have been conducting interviews with potential candidates on an ongoing basis. Our legal clerical section is severely short- staffed, with ten (10) clerks serving 16 attorneys. Our intention is to get the positions filled as soon as possible. c. Describe how the job would get done if this position were not funded and provide specific information (details, funding amounts, etcetera) of what programs or services would be eliminated and how that would impact our community. Department’s Response: Should the position not be funded/eliminated, juvenile victims who suffer from the heinous crime of sexual assault will have their cases absorbed by the current staff of attorneys who handle cases ranging from property crime to career criminals. Part of what makes this position so unique is the obstacles posed by the investigation and prosecution of juvenile sex assaults. The work requires special training and participation in local and statewide taskforces. A victim will make an initial disclosure, which is then reported to law enforcement. Follow up interviews with Detectives and further forensic interviewing and medical testing may be necessary prior to the report being submitted for prosecution. Once the DPA receives the case, additional preparation and more witness meetings may be needed. These interviews can lead to a victim to not want to participate or proceed in prosecuting a case. Rather than immediately declining the cases, our office may consider holding onto the case to give the victim some time to consider whether or not they want to go forward. Ultimately, the victim’s decision to go forward often comes down to trust and support from the DPA and support staff. Should a crime like this be handled by multiple DPA’s, a victim could become discouraged to continue with the case. Due to the sensitivity of the crime, and in order to efficiently manage the delicate process of reporting, charging and prosecuting sexual assault cases, the importance of having a trained and established DPA, who solely focuses their time to sex assault is crucial to the victim and the community at large. Since the inception of the Sex Assault Prosecution Unit (7/1/2016), a total of 148 cases were received. During this time 52 out of the 59 cases that were charged resulted in a conviction. 3. Provide a listing or table of all Deputy Prosecuting Attorney positions over the last four (4) years, indicating position number; position name; salary amount; funding source; and how many days, if any, each of these positions were vacant for each of the four (4) years. (Note: Both Numbers E-88 and 9091 are indicated in the proposed budget as “fully funded by other source,” but do not show salary amounts or state the funding source.) Department’s Response: The Department requests more time to research and respond to this question. We note that the Department has generally been able to recruit and retain DPAs more quickly and with better results than other counties in Hawaii.