Thursday, May 16, 2024 | St. Lawrence County, NY
BY JEFF CHUDZINSKI North Country This Week CANTON -- The St. Lawrence County District Attorney's Office now has funding to subsidize the cost of two additional Assistant District Attorney positions. …
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BY JEFF CHUDZINSKI
North Country This Week
CANTON -- The St. Lawrence County District Attorney's Office now has funding to subsidize the cost of two additional Assistant District Attorney positions.
St. Lawrence County legislators approved a resolution to accept $417,903 from the 2023-2024 Criminal Justice Discovery Reform Grant, which is administered by the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services.
The grant runs from April 1, 2023 through March 31, 2024 and will subsidize two assistant district attorney positions at an expected expenditure of $248,228 with the focus "on the implementation of discovery and/or bail reform efforts by the New York State Legislator."
The grant will also subsidize the cost of an additional Ogdensburg City Police Officer at the cost of $92,362.
An additional $4,212 will be used to cover the cost of PCMS Program Discovery Storage fees used for discovery by the District Attorney's Office, along with $73,128 to expedite Grand Jury transcripts to comply with Criminal Procedure Law.
"The New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services and New York State Attorney recognize the value of the assistance of the St. Lawrence County District Attorney's Office, Ogdensburg Police Department and the Prosecution Criminal Management System (PCMS) with the implementation of discover and/or bail reform efforts," legislators say.
In other action, legislators also approved a $200,000 budget modification for assigned counsel for Indigent Defense as a result of the program exceeding 2023 budgeted appropriations.
Officials say the cost to provide indigent defense continues to rise, with eligibility standards changing.
According to the resolution, county officials say they intend to access some of the proposed funding to address the cost associated with criminal and appeal cases.
The modification has increased appropriations for appeals cases by $15,000, criminal cases by $60,000 and family court cases by $125,000.
The funds will come from a specific contingent account used for such instances.
