This what you're looking for?I'm really interested if Schmidt said out loud that the DA's office wasn't prosecuting felon in possession cases, and, if so what the rationale for that decision. If someone can point to a quote in a reputable paper or a recent broadcast where he says that--specifically felon in possession cases--I want to hear it. I understand equity arguments in charging decisions, especially regarding property and public offense crimes--whether you agree or not--because the DA has historically dramatically overcharged everybody to create serious risk for defendants to extract plea deals from them. Some of the charging is for measure 11 crimes where the evidence is pretty skinny, but the risk to the defendant's liberty, long-term, is pretty serious. I've got a buddy who was caught selling something he shouldn't have and when the police searched his home they found a pistol and charged him will selling drugs with a weapon that would have dramatically increased his potential sentence, so he pled guilty with diversion and only got his gun rights restored after 25 years of being an upstanding successful citizen. I know another guy who got charged with DV and pled guilty--even though it was self-defense-- because he didn't want to miss work and he could enter diversion and get the plea expunged.
Maybe they have over-chaged more for brown folks (or at least those that they thought might have gang involvement) but it's pretty clear DA's have done it for everyone, the equity piece is more white folks can afford private counsel to push on the DA to get charges reduced.
OH, hey! Schmidt was just on the radio saying some felony in possession cases have been dismissed. He doesn't want the cases to be dismissed. The problem is there aren't enough PD's and if someone who is charged can't be given a lawyer in a reasonable period of time the court dismisses their case regardless of the DA's preferences. The state has never paid PD's similarly to DA's and state public defense organizations have 30% less PD's then they need. Apparently there really is not process for the DA to determine whether lawyers are available for public defense or not, so the DA's are triaging cases in how they charge them and are not seriously pursuing charges if there wasn't a direct victim, which actually could be felon in possession if the defendant was arrested for some crime without a direct victim. The Constitution also ensures that Defendants' have a right to a speedy trial and a right to counsel too. The criminal justice system only works with two sides.
Multnomah County DA to publish list of dismissed cases due to lack of public defender
Since February, some 285 misdemeanor and felony cases have been dismissed by judges in Multnomah County because there wasn’t a defense lawyer available to appoint to the case.
www.opb.org