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Judiciary committee hears that criminal dockets and public‑defender access remain strained amid COVID waves
Summary
State court administrators reported a high clearance rate but acknowledged lingering backlogs; prosecutors, sheriffs and the public defender commission described overcrowded jails, heavy caseloads for defenders and uneven recovery across jurisdictions.
At a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, Administrative Office of the Courts officials and criminal justice stakeholders described how the COVID‑19 pandemic and pre‑existing capacity constraints have combined to strain Arkansas criminal dockets, jails and public‑defender services.
Kristen Clark, director of the Legal Services Division at the Administrative Office of the Courts, told the committee that the Supreme Court has urged courts to remain open and to balance public‑health protections with access to justice. "When we look at the number of cases that have been filed and then we look at the number of cases that have been disposed of during that 1 year period, the clearance rate is 91 percent," Clark said, referencing 2020 data and saying judges had worked under "very unusual circumstances."
Scott Graves, director of research and statistics for the AOC,…
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