Discuss, consider and approve setting a budget of $755,885 from the ARPA Funding (American Rescue Plan Act) for project 445P Pretrial.

Positions being requested from ARPA to address COVID related issues for Pretrial are as follows and a spreadsheet is attached showing the costs.
Court Services Specialist:
The pandemic changed many magistration processes ultimately adding a level of complexity that requires more time to prepare the paperwork necessary for the magistration hearing. Additionally, in the interest of reducing the risk of COVID in the jail, the Sheriff’s Office was deliberate in the type of offenses accepted over the past 2 years. For sixteen months, the jail did not accept low level non-violent misdemeanor cases including all non-violent Class C misdemeanors. This resulted in a backlog of arrest warrants signed for these offenses as well as all Class C, JP, and municipal warrants, that would normally have been magistrated on a daily basis. As the jail and magistrate operations return to normal, we’re seeing the backlog of previously issued arrest warrants begin to appear as new bookings into the jail. Additional Court Services Specialists are needed to address the increase in the number of accused that need to be magistrated on any given day.

Pretrial Specialist:
The number of ignition interlocks ordered by the magistrates increased by 63% from FY20 to FY21 and is on pace increase again in FY22. Because there is a backlog of cases in the courts, DWI cases associated with ignition interlocks ordered are taking longer to process. This means these cases will need to be monitored for a longer period of time contributing to the growth of the overall caseload. An additional Pretrial Specialist is needed to assist with monitoring this population to ensure compliance is reported to the courts in a timely manner and to ensure community safety.