Why were so many charges dismissed by prosecutors?

One of the major benefits of the Gun Reduction and Interdiction Project, a campaign by federal, state and local law enforcement to get illegal guns off the streets of Youngstown, is that it gives the public an inside look at some of the criminals who have turned parts of the city into war zones.
Take the case of Brandit A. Franklin, 25, of Woodford Avenue, a gun and drug felon on probation since March for driving under suspension.
As The Vindicator revealed in a front-page story, Franklin received two DUS citations within one week this month. On July 9, police working a GRIP detail on Youngstown's South Side stopped him for failing to signal a turn. He was charged with DUS. Then last Wednesday, GRIP officers stopped Franklin for loud music. Again he was charged with DUS, in addition to violation of the city's noise ordinance.
His new DUS cases are set for a pretrial hearing Aug. 29 before Judge Robert A. Douglas Jr. of the Youngstown Municipal Court.
In March, Judge Douglas sentenced Franklin to 60 days in jail after he pleaded no contest to DUS stemming from an arrest in August 2002, but suspended all the time behind bars. Instead, the judge placed him on one year's probation and ordered him to obtain a valid driver's license.
But that isn't the only eye-opener in this case.
In detailing Franklin's criminal history, The Vindicator showed that this is a man who has received many breaks from the criminal justice system. For instance, in August 2001, he was sentenced to three years on gun and drug convictions, yet he served only 41/2 months because he was admitted to a boot camp at Southeastern Correctional Institution near Lancaster, Ohio. By successfully completing the 90-day program, he had 21/2 years taken off his prison term.
Reduced charge
But there's more.
In October 1998, he was convicted of carrying a concealed weapon, but Judge Robert G. Lisotto of the Mahoning County Common Pleas Court sentenced him to six months in county jail and then suspended all the jail time and placed him on a year's probation. The charge had been reduced to a misdemeanor before sentencing.
Why was the charge reduced?
In March 2000, he was convicted of carrying a concealed weapon and possession of cocaine and sentenced to three years in prison by Common Pleas Judge Maureen Cronin, who suspended the time and gave him three years' probation. A firearms specification had previously been dismissed at the request of an assistant county prosecutor.
Why? How would Judge Cronin have handled this case had the firearms specification remained?
In June 2002, Franklin was convicted of possession of cocaine and sentenced to one year's probation by Common Pleas Judge Jack Durkin. A charge of preparation of cocaine for sale had previously been dismissed at the request of an assistant county prosecutor.
Why?
In January 2001, Judge Cronin reimposed the three-year sentence she had previously suspended after the state asked her to extend or revoke the probation because of the case pending in Judge Durkin's court. She ordered Franklin to be held without bond and reset the probation hearing at least six times.
Why the delay in hearing the state's request?
These questions pertaining to the actions of prosecutors and judges go the heart of the crime problem in Youngstown. At a time when law-abiding citizens are demanding that professional criminals be put in prison and the key thrown away, it seems that Franklin and others get break after break from the system.
We would hope that as part of GRIP, the federal government will evaluate how the municipal and common pleas courts, prosecutors and local law enforcement deal with individuals who do not belong on the streets.