Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx is dropping felony cases involving charges of murder and other serious offenses at a higher rate than her predecessor, according to a Chicago Tribune analysis. She drops just under 30% of them.
Kim Foxx was made notorious in the Jussie Smollett case.
During Foxx’s first three years as the county’s top prosecutor, her office dropped all charges against 29.9% of felony defendants. The last person in the position dropped at a rate of 19.4%, which was lax.
Democrat Foxx swept into office with huge sums of Soros money. She says she is reforming the system.
SHE DOES IT TO CONCENTRATE ON CRIMES OF VIOLENCE?
In an interview, Foxx claimed her office has dismissed cases against low-level, nonviolent offenders so prosecutors can concentrate on crimes of violence. Only that isn’t true.
The Tribune found that Foxx’s higher rates of dropped cases included people accused of murder, shooting another person, sex crimes, and attacks on police officers — as well as serious drug offenses that for decades have driven much of Chicago’s street violence.
For the three-year period analyzed, Foxx’s office dropped 8.1% of homicide cases, compared with 5.3% under Alvarez, the Tribune found. Under Foxx, the office dropped 9.5% of felony sex crime cases; the rate was 6.5% for Alvarez.
Foxx’s office also increased the rate of dropped cases for aggravated battery and for aggravated battery with a firearm. And under Foxx, the percentage of cases dropped for defendants accused of aggravated battery of a police officer more than doubled, from 3.9% to 8.1%.
-
The Importance of Prayer: How a Christian Gold Company Stands Out by Defending Americans’ Retirement
Homicide, felony sex cases, aggravated battery, aggravated battery with a firearm — dropped.
Foxx claims she’s overcoming the dark history of Chicago police detectives torturing people of color to gain false confessions.
“Recognizing the history that we’ve had around wrongful convictions, recognizing our ethical obligations as prosecutors … requires us to reinforce that people can, if they believe a case is flawed, bring it to our attention, and we will dismiss it if it’s appropriate,” Foxx said.
The Tribune findings are based on data that Foxx’s office posted online showing the outcomes for more than 810,000 charges from 2011 onward.
The Tribune wanted to determine if some were multiple charges in a single case, but Foxx’s database does not include the information. Her database is incomplete.
DRUGS ARE OKAY
Foxx has long argued that enforcement of drug offenses disproportionately affects communities of color.
Indeed, the Tribune found that Foxx’s office dropped more than half of all felony narcotics cases, compared with just over a third for Alvarez.
But the disparity in dismissed cases was especially acute among people charged with the most serious drug crimes. Those include trafficking and other drug manufacturing and delivering offenses categorized as Class X felonies. They are the most serious class of felony other than murder. Foxx’s office dropped 1 out of every 4 of those Class X drug cases, compared with about 1 out of 9 for Alvarez.
When Foxx looked at conviction rates, she excluded felony burglary, narcotics, and child pornography. She said, “we’re not being dismissive of any of those offenses, but she did dismiss them.
Felony burglary, narcotics, and child pornography are not so bad in her mind.
CRIME SURGES, BUT IT’S NOT HER POLICIES
As of Aug. 2, the number of people killed in Chicago had hit 450, up 55% from 291 by the same date the previous year. Shootings were up 48%, jumping from 1,220 to 1,804, according to Chicago police numbers.
Foxx said her policies have not led to the recent spike in violent crime, which she noted occurred during a pandemic and time of civil unrest, and that other big [blue] cities also have seen increases.
NO BAIL
Along with Chief Judge Timothy Evans and Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle, Foxx has advocated for lowering or eliminating cash bonds for defendants facing a host of charges, including many gun offenses. If they are too poor for bail, she wants to set them free.
As more defendants were freed from jail, judges increasingly placed many of them on electronic home monitoring as a condition of their release. Defendants who destroy the ankle bracelet or simply take off can be charged with felony escape.
It’s a charge where the difference between Foxx’s office and Alvarez’s is particularly stark. About 400 people are charged every year with felony escape. During Alvarez’s last three years in office, she dropped a total of 55 such cases, compared with 429 for Foxx.
Foxx could not explain why her office has pursued far fewer escape cases than under Alvarez. “We don’t have an official policy on escape and so I don’t have an answer for you as to why that number would be different, other than, again, we’re asking our people to be able to proceed on cases where the facts, the law, and the evidence support it.”
Matthew Walberg is a spokesman for Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart who administers the electronic monitoring program. He criticized Foxx’s office for dropping so many escape cases after charges were filed.
“Individuals who commit these types of violations should be held accountable for their actions,” Walberg said.
Escape is okay.
If you like what you see, vote Democrat. They’re serious about this, and aren’t just doing it to hurt Trump and his followers.
wpDiscuz
