City prosecutor wants Federal, state and city funding cuts could affect prosecution of career criminals like accused cop killer Shane Mark and could affect campaign spending investigations, city Prosecutor Peter Carlisle said.
$450,000 back in budget
The money is part of more than
$1 million cut by Mayor HarrisBy Crystal Kua
ckua@starbulletin.comCarlisle appeared before the City Council yesterday to ask that $450,000 in funding that was not approved by Mayor Jeremy Harris be restored to his budget.
"That will allow me to do what I think I need to do for next year, which is to keep the number of people we've got, add a couple of more in the prosecutorial side, the staff for them, and then we'll be able to respond to what we need to do," Carlisle said.
"Right now, with the budget that's being proposed, the prospects of me being able to do that next year are slim to none and grim. I mean, it looks like we're actually going to be losing bodies."
Yesterday was the first day of Council scrutiny of the Harris administration's $1.1 billion proposed operating budget for the fiscal year beginning July 1.
Carlisle said the administration cut more than $1 million -- $800,000 in salaries, $200,000 in expenses and $28,000 in replacement equipment -- from his requested budget.
He is asking that the Council restore $200,000 for merit pay for deputy prosecutors, $150,000 for 2.5 attorney positions and $100,000 for three legal-support staff positions.
If the money is not put into his budget, Carlisle said he will have difficulty retaining experienced attorneys, recruiting and hiring new attorneys, sustaining the career criminal unit, providing adequate legal clerical support and maintaining victim witness services.
Without the incentives, the Prosecutor's Office could lose experienced attorneys to more lucrative jobs at the state or federal level, Carlisle said.
The career criminal unit currently prosecutes suspects "with this enormous level of criminal activity," Carlisle said, pointing to the fatal shooting of Officer Glen Gaspar. Mark, who has a long criminal record, is charged in Gaspar's death.
"We don't have any backup for them if they get out of the game," Carlisle said, referring to the members of the unit.
Budget Director Ivan Lui-Kwan pointed out that the Prosecutor's Office's overall budget is about 1 percent less than the current year's budget of $13.5 million. What Carlisle is asking for comes from budget requests made to the administration.
"I think what you hear from the prosecuting attorney is pretty much the same kind of arguments that were made by all of the directors when there were appeals made to the managing director," Lui-Kwan said.
But the city cuts are not the only ones being faced by the office, Carlisle said. The state funding it receives is being slashed by 5 percent, and the federal government is shifting its resources from local crimes to terrorism, Carlisle said.
Councilman Charles Djou asked if Carlisle had adequate resources to pursue public corruption cases.
"Do we have enough resources to handle these things if they come in the type of volumes they've been coming in right now, and the answer is, I don't think so," Carlisle said. "It's a team without any bench right now."
Carlisle said it is "awkward" to talk with members of the Harris administration on the budget because the Harris campaign is under criminal investigation. But he does not believe the cuts to his budget are politically motivated, he said.