ULSTER COUNTY The Ulster County Public Defender is being held accountable by police commanders from multiple departments in Ulster County for keeping officers off the streets while they observe defendants who are not capable of being arraigned because the public defenders are not appearing in local court for arraignments. The defendant is usually allowed back into society if there are no cops present to look on them.
Officers in the Esopus Justice Court who make an arrest and must arraign the subject after regular business hours are being turned away. Officers requesting arraignments in that court after hours are greeted by a recorded message stating that the court is unable to hold arraignments after hours due to a shortage of public defenders.
Chief of Police for the Town of Lloyd, Jim Janso, voiced his displeasure, stating that his department is now burdened and that it has become a safety concern for our officers and the community not to have a public defender available after hours. Janso stated: “It is very frustrating for my officers to have to stay with a defendant for several hours at the station until a public defender becomes available, or if none are available, we have to release the defendant.” She cited several instances in the last few weeks where an arraignment was unable to take place due to the lack of a public defender. Chief Janso also hinted that when the public defender’s office keeps an officer in the station instead of showing up for arraignments, it endangers public safety. He deemed the practice objectionable and stated that it removes the officer from the road for an undisclosed period of time, leaving our department and our town without an officer on patrol.
There have been such incidents in the Town of Ulster and Rosendale.
According to Ulster County legislator Gina Hansut, who chairs the legislature’s public safety committee, Ulster County is creating a Central Arraignment Part known as CAP Court. This court will hold arraignments for defendants arrested when a town or village court is closed, which is usually on the weekends and evenings. The committee overseeing the creation of the new court is led by Justice Kyle Barnett of the Town of Ulster. In response to a question regarding the present difficulties to arraign defendants, Hansut stated, “I understand our police chiefs’ frustration and look forward to supporting them in this circumstance.”
Ulster County Executive Jen Metzger was contacted by Mid-Hudson News over the matter, and when they inquired about if a recent directive had rendered public defenders unavailable after hours in contrast to previous practice, Metzger’s office replied that no new orders were in place to prohibit arraignments after 5 p.m. Like many other offices, the public defender’s office is experiencing a personnel shortfall, particularly in the field of Counsel at First Appearance. The Ulster County Public Defender is collaborating with the group to establish the new court, and the county administration is optimistic that it will help ease the existing situation. In order to minimize the necessity for counsel at first appearance, CAP Court will provide centralized arraignment at the Law Enforcement Center.
Since a modification in New York State legislation in 2016, the CAP Courts have been permitted, and several have been established around the state, including one in Orange County.
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