FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact:Teresa Ruiz

October 1, 2004 973-621-4404

ESSEX COUNTY EXECUTIVE DIVINCENZO SHOWS STATE-OF-THE-ART

VIDEO CONFERENCING AND ARRAIGNMENT SYSTEM

More than 9,000 Video Arraignments and Conferences Conducted Since April

Newark, NJ – Inmates at the Essex County Correctional Facility no longer have to be transported from their cells on Doremus Avenue to the Essex County Courthouse to be arraigned or meet with attorneys. Instead, Essex County is bringing the courtroom to them via a state-of-the-art computerized closed circuit video arraignment system. Essex County Executive Joseph N. DiVincenzo, Jr. recently displayed Essex County’s new, state-of-the-art video equipment in the Essex County New Courts Building.

Essex County began using the video system in April when the new Correctional Facility was opened. The system was first used for video conferences and in July, the use was expanded to include video arraignments. In the last six months, more than 9,000 video conferences and arraignments have been conducted. This has eliminated the need to transport inmates from the Correctional Facility to the Courthouse to be arraigned or for various conferences and interviews.

While there are other Superior Court Vicinages in New Jersey that use video arraignment systems, Essex is the first county to implement a modern, computerized system that is capable of electronically transmitting signed documents from the Correctional Facility to the courtroom. This eliminates the need to transport inmates and court documents between the Correctional Facility and New Courts Building, streamlining the process and reducing the number of times paperwork has to be handled.

“Initiating video arraignment and conferencing at this time makes sense for Essex County. Opening our new Correctional Facility provided us the opportunity to examine how we operate, to institute new ways to reduce costs and to make our jail and court system work more efficiently and cost effectively,” DiVincenzo said. “The cooperation between all branches of government has ensured the progress of this new initiative,” he added.

The video arraignment system links a defendant who is seated in the Central Judicial Processing (CJP) Room in the Essex County Correctional Facility on Doremus Avenue in Newark to Courtroom 502 in the New Courts Building on Nelson Place in Newark. Watching a split-screen monitor in the CPJ Room, the defendant can see the judge, prosecutor and his defense attorney in the courtroom. Using laptop computers at their desks, the judge, prosecutor and defense attorney are able to see and hear the defendant. The audience in the courtroom sees the defendant on a big-screen television monitor. The system also has the capability of allowing the defendant and his defense attorney to conduct personal conversations that cannot be heard by others in the courtroom. Video arraignment is not mandatory, and the defendant can appear in the courtroom in person if they request it. Scott Faunce, Director of Corrections, stated, “This technology removes the burden that the administration faced in moving the inmates to and from court and has helped to eliminate the risks associated with transportation.”

Essex County’s video arraignment system went on line July 15th and, through September 27th, 1,725 arraignments have been conducted using the video equipment. Video arraignments are conducted in the Video Arraignment Courtroom on the second floor of the Administration Building in the Correctional Facility. The arraignments commence at about 11:30 a.m. each day, with each individual arraignment taking an average time of four minutes. Since July 19th, no inmates have been transported from the Correctional Facility to the courthouse for arraignment purposes. This has eliminated the need to transport these inmates to the courthouse and has ensured inmates are arraigned within 72 hours of their arrest, which is required by law. Depending on the complexity of the cases, county officials estimate at least 50 arraignments could be completed on a single day.

“Having defendants enter their pleas via video arraignment does not diminish the importance of the proceedings. Arraignments, however, are generally administrative in nature and most take just a few minutes to complete. In our old system, most of our energy and expense that is spent on arraignments was for transportation,” County Counsel Frank Giantomasi said. “Video arraignment and conferencing will streamline our criminal justice system and has the potential to speed up the judicial process. This will help defendants get the speedy trial that they are entitled to under the law,” the County Counsel said, adding that his Assistant County Counsel Charles Daglian worked closely with the Superior Court to move video arraignment and conferencing forward.

Essex County also has been utilizing a video conferencing system that allows court officers with Criminal Case Management and Public Defenders Office to conduct pre-trial interviews with defendants. Pre-arraignment conferences are held from 7 to 9:30 a.m. with defendants sitting in video booths located near their housing units in the Correctional Facility. From April 29, 2004, when this system was implemented to September 27th, a total of 6,598 pre-arraignment conferences and 997 post-arraignment conferences have been conducted.

Acting Essex County Prosecutor Paula T. Dow praised the implementation of the video arraignment and conferencing systems as a gigantic step forward in the effort to streamline the judicial process. According to Acting Prosecutor Dow, “this is by far a more efficient use of the resources of all offices involved in the criminal justice system in Essex County. The technology involved enhances public security, preserves the rights of the accused, assures those jailed following arrest of expeditious consideration of their cases, allows better use of prosecutorial staff time, and overall provides better service to the taxpayers of Essex County at a lower cost. This is a prime example of technology being used for the benefit of the public.”

The County Executive also is working with the Superior Court System to expand the use of the video arraignment and conference system to include post-arraignment conferences and bail motions. It also allows outside agencies, such as the State Parole Board and other law enforcement agencies, to conduct interviews via a video hook up. As of September 27th, 24 such video conferences have been conducted.

When DiVincenzo took office as County Executive in January 2003, only 40 percent of the new Essex County Correctional Facility on Doremus Avenue was completed. Construction on the $416 million Correctional Facility was completed in just 12 months. After a three-month transition period, more than 2,000 inmates from the Essex County Jail in Newark and Jail Annex in North Caldwell were relocated to the new facility without any incidents, over two weekends in March, 2004.

# # #