U.S. attorney: Local courts must improve case delays

YOUNGSTOWN — “Tremendous efforts” are being conducted here to deal with crime, says the U.S. attorney for Northern District of Ohio.

Gregory A. White was guest speaker today at Fellows Riverside Gardens Davis Center for a luncheon meeting of Rotary members from Mahoning, Trumbull and Columbiana counties.

White, a former Lorain County prosecutor, was appointed to his present position in March 2003 by President Bush.

White said the U.S. Department of Justice touches everyone’s lives, adding the “hot issue” in Youngstown is violence and crime. He said the area is fortunate to have extensive cooperation among local, state and federal law enforcement agencies to reduce gun and gang violence.

It’s crucial to have partnerships to be effective, he said.

He said the U.S. Marshals Service fugitive task force, for example, has arrested 3,400 people since July 2003. He said the arrests include 60 fugitives charged with homicide.

Also, he said than 200 gun cases have been prosecuted at the federal level since the Gun Reduction Interdiction Program began in the summer of 2003. He said 25 percent of the gun cases prosecuted in the Northern District of Ohio federal courts come from the Youngstown area.

In response to an audience member’s question about the delay to bring cases to trial, White said the statistics aren’t good in Mahoning County, adding the process needs to be driven by the courts.

He acknowledged being aware that most of the Mahoning County jail inmates are accused of serious felonies and “waiting for their day in court.”

He told those assembled not to make evaluations based on spikes in violent crime, which he said has been seen nationwide.

“We’ll go through peaks and valleys,” he said.

White talked at length about the federal government’s “No. 1 initiative” — prevention of future terrorist attacks. He said there are two terrorism task forces in Ohio, one in Toledo and one in Cleveland. The one in Cleveland includes the Mahoning Valley.