Village Justice Thomas F. Liotti
On Sept. 20, 2001, I held my first meeting in Manhattan as Chair of the New York State Bar Association’s Criminal Justice Section. In front of me were some of the most experienced prosecutors, defense lawyers and judges in the nation. Several moments of silence for the victims of 9/11 were followed by a tension filled round table discussion of what we should do to respond to 9/11. Anger and frustration were expressed but bewilderment rather than solutions gripped the air. It was too early for any intelligent discussions.
I was soon appointed by the president of the New York State Bar Association to chair its newly formed anti-terrorism committee. I in turn appointed distinguished lawyers and judges as members of that committee and invited Mary Jo White, the United States Attorney for the southern district of New York, a renowned expert on terrorism, as our annual luncheon speaker. By then we had invaded Afghanistan, and stepped up security at airports and municipal buildings. Attorneys had to secure special passes to by-pass metal detectors at courthouses. More prosecutions of alleged terrorists occurred and even a lawyer, Lynne Stewart, was convicted for aiding and abetting terrorists or those who planned the 1993 World Trade Center attacks.
As wars continue to rage throughout the world, we have seen a proliferation of violence at home but solutions to it remain unmet. While we have responded to terrorism and crime by heightened security we have not properly screened, vetted and trained those in law enforcement so that we might curtail the use of excessive force and root out those with a racist or aggressive bent.
There are psychological tests such as the MMPI-2 which if administered, would help to determine who is fit to carry a badge and gun. We need to get illegal guns off the street but stop and frisk is no longer the answer or is it in some modified form that may pass Constitutional muster?
Violence is also caused by the mentally ill. Kendra’s Law has aided us as a partial solution but clearly, the Department of Mental Hygiene needs more support in order to monitor, find and treat the mentally ill, especially those who have been found to be dangerous.
Gangs such as the Latin Kings or MS13 are not unlike the Mafia of yesteryear which arose, in part, due to discrimination against Italian Americans. We need to give new immigrants a path to a legal status in this country so they can fully assimilate into our culture and not have to resort to gangs for survival. Multi-lingual education in our schools is essential. Foreign students must be embraced not shunned where they may then join the underground economy.
Drugs and alcohol often fueled by poverty are significant causes of crime. Here the answers are simple. We need more money for treatment programs and job training for significant jobs in the private sector.
As a local criminal court we can be a catalyst for solutions by articulating these issues. We set an example and provide hope, the single most important component in eliminating violence throughout the world.
