Anti-Administration Fee

November 8, 2005

District Attorney Kamala Harris
850 Bryant Street
San Francisco, CA 94103

Dear District Attorney Kamala Harris,

We the undersigned will resign as community court volunteers if the administrative fee presented at the first Community Court Advisory Committee on October 26 is enforced. The multiple reasons for such a drastic decision include:

1) Presently, community courts in all districts, even districts with high crime rates, are receiving low case loads, sometimes reviewing as little as four cases per month or being canceled all together. San Francisco residents are only beginning to learn about the community court initiative and its benefits. We are certain that with the additional burden of $75-$165.00 and a lack of familiarity with community courts, offenders will choose to send their cases back to the District Attorneys Office for a possible hearing, free of initial charges, at 850 Bryant. If the fee is enacted, therefore, case loads will only further diminish.
2) The community volunteers feel that the program is not adequately supported by the District Attorneys Office at present. In light of the minimal hours dedicated to community courts by DA staff members, volunteers do not understand why the program is not fully covered in the budget for your office. If the program is to be successful, your office should invest accordingly in the program.
3) Panelists do not understand why the community court program, which is run by volunteers and reportedly saves the District Attorneys Office, should be asked to impose an administrative fee for your office.
4) Most of the citants that attend community court are low-income, though they may not fall under the Federal Income Poverty Index and, thus, will not qualify for a dismissal of the administrative fee. Community courts are intended to be restorative in nature and not punitive. While direct dialogue with affected panelists who reside in the community, community service, social programs, and reasonable fines help an offender realize the consequences of his/her actions and change his/her behavior, exorbitant fines will only cause resentment with the system and further the feeling of disenfranchisement for offenders.
5) Many panelists will be inclined to reduce the restitution fee to offset the financial burden of the offender, thereby reducing the amount of funds available for community improvement projects via the Mayors Community Support Fund.

Please revisit the fee with our Supervisors. We feel that community courts are a great resource for reducing crime in our neighborhoods by changing behavior and supporting dialogue among members of the community, and we want to see the program continue.