More criminals are being convicted; many low-level offenders avoid prison

The county's homicide rate has fallen and the conviction numbers have grown.
By BOB JACKSON
VINDICATOR COURTHOUSE REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN -- More people are being convicted of crimes in Mahoning County, but that doesn't mean more people are going to prison.
Many are being diverted into alternative sentencing programs designed to rehabilitate low-level offenders.
According to sta tistics from Community Corrections Association, there were 832 criminal convictions in common pleas court in 2001. The figures are based on CCA's fiscal year, which began July 1, 2000, and ended June 30, 2001, said Richard J. Billak, chief executive officer.
The conviction numbers have been steadily increasing since 1997, when Prosecutor Paul Gains took office. Gains, now a year into his second term, offered a simple explanation.
"I took down the 'for sale' sign," he said.
Cases fixed: He was referring to the fact that his predecessor, James A. Philomena, took bribes from lawyers in a case-fixing scheme. Philomena is serving a federal prison sentence for his role in the operation.
Mark Huberman, chairman of the county corrections planning board, agreed that the end of case-fixing has made a difference in the ways cases are prosecuted.
"The county prosecutor's office is no longer an office of corruption," he said.
Gains said he brought an aggressive approach to the prosecutor's office. He's sought and gotten more grand jury indictments than Philomena did, resulting in the higher conviction numbers.
The plan has been to "get the bad guys off the streets" and reduce the county's crime rate, he said.
The plan worked, because homicide numbers decreased in conjunction with the rising number of convictions, he said.
There were 68 homicides in the county in 1996, Philomena's last year in office. All but five of those were in Youngstown. The number dropped to 50 in 1997, 47 in 1998 and 33 in 1999 and 2000. So far this year there have been 33 homicides as well.
"My people are doing the job," Gains said. "The statistics speak for themselves."
Sheriff is satisfied: Sheriff Randall Wellington said he's pleased with the rising convictions.
"You can't dispute those numbers," Wellington said. "He's putting people in jail, where they belong."
Billak said the conviction numbers include trials and cases in which defendants pleaded guilty, even if the plea is to reduced charges, including misdemeanors.
The CCA report says that 238 of the 832 people convicted in common pleas court this year, or 29 percent, went to prison. Others were placed on probation or into other alternative sentencing programs, he said.
The percentage of prison commitments from common pleas court was 41 percent in 1995 and has stayed below 40 percent since then, according to the CCA report.
That's in keeping with CCA's goal of holding the percentage of Mahoning County inmates who go to prison below 40 percent, he said. The aim is to put people behind bars who belong there, while finding other ways to punish nonviolent offenders and help reduce the burden on Ohio's prisons.
Ohio law has five levels of felony offenses, in which first-degree felonies are the most serious, violent crimes, and fifth-degree felonies are less serious, nonviolent offenses.
The breakdown: Billak said nearly all first- and second-degree felons are sent to prison, while nearly all fourth- and fifth-degree convictions result in alternative sentences such as probation or one of CCA's programs such as community service or electronic monitoring.
Third-degree felons can get either sentence, depending on their past record and sentencing guidelines, he said.
The CCA report does not break down convictions according to their felony or misdemeanor level.
The rising number of criminal cases has meant more people go into the CCA program, which has placed a financial strain on the agency, Billak said.
"We're keeping pace, but at some point the rubber band is going to snap," Billak said. "We can't keep up this pace without additional resources."
CCA gets most of its funding through contracts with the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction, Billak said. It also has contracts with local governments, including Mahoning County, and receives private donations.
Court adjustment: The increasing number of criminal cases has also caused the courts to adjust, said county Administrator Robert Rupeka. Judges have hired law clerks and implemented a mediation program to help keep pace with the rising caseload.
"We're countering the effect of the increase, but we're still busy," Rupeka said.
bjackson@vindy.com