Rainer Steinhoff

This is an interesting ruling from the Ohio First District.

In the excerpt below, the Court finds a "compromise" betwwen a criminal defendant's right to confront his witnesses, and the witnesses' need for protection.

STATE v. JOHNSON
2011 Ohio 3143
Court of Appeals of Ohio, First District, Hamilton County.
Date of Judgment Entry on Appeal: June 29, 2011.

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  {¶61} While neither this court nor the Ohio Supreme Court has addressed whether a defendant's confrontation right is violated by the presentation of an adult witness's testimony by two-way closed-circuit television, multiple state and federal courts have read Craig's references to "an important public policy" and "an important state interest" as suggesting a general rule that is not limited to protecting child victims of sexual offenses from the trauma of testifying in a defendant's presence. These courts have likewise concluded that even though Craig concerned a statute that permitted child witnesses in sexual offenses to testify by one-way closed-circuit television, the state need not point to a statute that codifies the important policy

interest it seeks to further before it may invoke Craig.

{¶62} In this case, the trial court implemented the two-way closed-circuit television procedure based on its own observations, as well as the assistant prosecuting attorney's observations, that a large number of the defendant's friends and family had been intimidating three witnesses. The trial court's comments on the record reveal that it was not predisposed to permitting the state to present the testimony by two-way closed-circuit television, but that it permitted the testimony only out of necessity.

{¶63} This court is aware that witness intimidation is a widespread problem in Hamilton County, and it is disruptive of the administration of criminal justice. The United States Supreme Court itself has recognized that "[w]hen defendants seek to undermine the judicial process by procuring or coercing silence from witnesses and victims, the Sixth Amendment does not require courts to acquiesce." Indisputably, James's, Leaks's, and Higgins's testimony was critical to the state's case against Johnson. The trial court was understandably concerned that these witnesses be able to testify in a neutral setting because witnesses who are intimidated provide less reliable testimony, which defeats the truth-seeking goals of confrontation. The trial court's use of the two-way video procedure was necessary to further the public policy of justly resolving the criminal case, while at the same time protecting the well-being of the state's witnesses.

{¶64} The trial court's use of the two-way closed-circuit television procedure additionally preserved the reliability of these witnesses' testimony. James, Leaks, and Higgins appeared with their counsel in the Hamilton Justice Center, they were sworn by the court, they gave testimony, and they were subjected to a rigorous, live cross-examination before the jury, Johnson, defense counsel, and the court. The jury was able to assess these witnesses' demeanors while they testified, and Johnson and his counsel were able to weigh the impact of their testimony on the jury as counsel crafted her cross-examination.

Winter Dusk

I took this photo near my home recently.

(Copyright Rainer Steinhoff 2012)

 

Mentally ill languish in Youth Services

By  Andrew Welsh-Huggins

ASSOCIATED PRESS Saturday January 7, 2012 6:33 AM

The state should transfer mentally ill juvenile inmates to psychiatric facilities as soon as possible and find money for their treatment, according to a new report on the status of Ohio’s youth prison system.

The Department of Youth Services holds some of the most-acutely mentally ill youths in the state, who would be transferred to more-appropriate psychiatric-treatment facilities if they were hospitalized or in other settings outside detention, the report said.

The report filed in federal court on Thursday also said that repeatedly placing mentally ill youths in seclusion affects decisions about whether they should be held beyond the end of their sentences.

Under a court settlement, Youth Services must “strive to prevent deterioration or exacerbation of mental-health symptoms and needless isolation for behaviors caused by mental-health issues,” according to the report by court-appointed monitors Will Harrell and Terry Schuster.

Youth Services and a state interagency committee on mental health and juvenile justice are looking at long-term fixes. Thursday’s report raised the point of more-immediate action.

The state said it “provides comprehensive behavioral-health services” to youths, including two mental-health units for boys and one for girls, each staffed with full-time psychologists and social workers, according to department spokeswoman Andrea Kruse.

Ohio has procedures to move mentally ill offenders to psychiatric hospitals, Kruse said, but she added that “because of the violent behavior that many of the youth present, it is often difficult to find placement.”

The report is the third annual summary reviewing Youth Services’ efforts to make prisons safer since a 2004 lawsuit that alleged a culture of violence.

Much has changed since that lawsuit: The state has closed several detention facilities, and the population has sunk to about 600 inmates, almost all of them boys. But violence continues in the system.

Most juvenile offenders in Ohio now are held in county-run facilities around the state in an attempt to keep them closer to family and away from a prison-like atmosphere that could increase the chances of them committing more crimes.

As a result, the juveniles who end up in state custody are among the toughest youthful offenders in Ohio. They’re older — an average age of nearly 18 — and serve sentences averaging more than a year.

This has created new challenges for the state in its attempt to treat them.

In August and September, gang-related violence exploded in the system, with 11 large-scale brawls. Teens were breaking out of their cells for fights, and numerous guards and juvenile inmates were injured.

By the end of September, 20 staff members were on leave because of injuries suffered in assaults, and teens not involved in the violence were refusing to go to school or therapy sessions out of fear for their safety.

The report recommended that Youth Services address gang violence in part by expanding recreational and job-related activities.

“Youth consistently

report that they have too much time with nothing to do, and that gang-related activities fill the void,” the report said.

Among other mental-health issues, the report addressed:

• Mental-health experts found that programs weren’t monitored to measure their effectiveness and whether they could be improved, and care provided to youth wasn’t being systematically reviewed.

• Monitors found shortages in psychiatric-care hours and significant vacancies for psychologists, psychiatric nurses and social workers.

• In the Scioto Juvenile Correctional Facility in Delaware County, monitors found that several juveniles with poor school attendance had mental-health concerns that needed attention and that “in many cases, mental-health team members were not aware of the problems these youth were having in school.”

Workshop to take on bullying:

New family Saturday school brings in parents of suspended students for all three sessions

(The Columbus Dispatch; 1/3/12; by Charlie Boss)

Starting in February, local schools will have another tool for dealing with bullies: family Saturday school.

“If you’re a bully, and we suspend you for five to 10 days, when you come back, you’re still going to be a bully,” said Rich Playko, who oversees student services for Groveport Madison schools. “We’ve done nothing to change the behavior.”

The district plans to send first-time offenders to the workshop. It won’t be mandatory, but students who attend with their parents can reduce the length of their suspension.

Groveport Madison officials approached the Educational Council, a consortium of Franklin County school districts, to come up with a workshop that educates students and involves parents.

The council hosts similar seminars focused on truancy and substance and tobacco abuse.

As part of the bullying workshop, students and parents will meet in three-hour sessions for three Saturdays to learn how their actions affect others and the legal consequences of bullying. Moderators will help students identify new ways to deal with their anger and resolve conflicts.

“The things we are addressing are the things kids don’t hear,” said Debbie Bassinger, who oversees intervention programs for the council. “We are working with them to admit what they are doing isn’t teasing or horseplay.”

She said the council will offer four workshops in 2012, serving eight or nine students. They plan to follow-up with participants to see whether their behavior has improved.

“If this works, we’ve eliminated or reduced suspensions,” Bassinger said. “You’re not only educating students about their behavior but keeping them in school.”

The workshop will be free for referred families. Those interested in signing up might have to pay about $300, depending on the district they attend.

Experts say workshops can be an effective way to combat bullying.

“The idea of taking some of their time — on a Saturday, with their parents there — that piece can be really powerful,” said Jim Bisenius of Pickerington and founder of Bully-Proofing Youth, which provides prevention training to educators, students and parents.

The workshop also might inspire parents to act.

“When a parent has to drive to the Saturday training, when they have to put their own time on the line, they tend to get more strict,” Bisenius said.

Preschool takes kids suspended by others

Preschool takes kids suspended by others.

I hope this is not an indication of how the new year will go ...