Reprinted with permission of Star Tribune

Commentary: Closing this gap could save lives

Amy Klobuchar

On Sept. 25 two years ago, 48-year-old Ilka Mondane was shot and killed outside her home in south Minneapolis by her ex-husband, Douglas Welch. At the time of the murder, he was out on bail after having pleaded guilty just a few weeks earlier to being a felon in possession of a gun. This gun crime carried a mandatory minimum prison sentence of 18 months (it"s now five years). But the judge reduced Welch"s bail to $5,000 until his formal sentencing on the gun crime, and Welch was out on the street. Soon after his release, he murdered his ex-wife.

Unknown to the judge and the prosecutor were several important facts about Welch. Only a month earlier, he had been arrested (but not charged) for domestic assault against a girlfriend. And just a few years earlier, another girlfriend had filed a court order for protection against him because he had threatened to shoot her.

Afterward, the judge said that if he had known these facts, he never would have considered reducing Welch"s bail. Based on the information available to him, the judge believed that Welch"s gun possession case was an isolated incident.

This tragic story highlights the literally life-or-death consequences that can result from the serious information gaps in our criminal justice system. These gaps are caused by the multiple, often incompatible computer systems used by the 1,000 law enforcement and criminal justice agencies throughout the state. The gaps are further compounded by poor, unwieldy access to the limited information that is available.

Fortunately, there is now greater awareness and concern that something must be done because these information gaps are undermining the efficiency and accountability of the criminal justice system, while also endangering public safety.

The dimensions of this challenge should not be underestimated. The volumes of data - from police investigation and arrest through prosecution and court disposition to incarceration and probation - are staggering.

Each year, for example, our office alone files 7,000 adult felony charges, while 45 separate municipalities in the county charge thousands of adult misdemeanor crimes. Our juvenile prosecution division charges more than 7,000 misdemeanor and felony cases each year, while also handling 12,000 lower-level juvenile cases.

What we know about the past records of people who commit crimes is very important to protecting public safety and ensuring the fair administration of justice. Judges, prosecutors and others in the criminal justice system are making fateful decisions every day about people"s lives with information that we know is often sadly incomplete.

Indeed, our gaps in information are sometimes more like grand canyons. For example, Minnesota does not have a statewide database of people on probation. Nor do we have a statewide system to track misdemeanor offenders. Sometimes, our prosecutors must literally call around to local police departments to find out if defendants have misdemeanor records in other communities where they have lived.

Criminals freely cross city, county and state lines all the time. Our information about criminals needs to do the same.

The lack of comprehensive information on misdemeanor offenders and individuals on probation is a special concern because serious criminals often start out committing lower-level offenses. They can reoffend again and again, in different jurisdictions, while escaping serious attention.

There are now serious planning efforts underway to improve information access, most notably with planning for a statewide criminal justice information system. The Legislature and the governor have encouraged innovative ideas across the state. In Hennepin County, the state and the County Board are already funding a pilot project. The purpose is not to build a whole new system, but to focus on "skyways" connecting different computer systems, just as corporations do when they merge with other corporations.

In addition, a plan is underway in Hennepin County to create a countywide juvenile database. This initiative will encourage information-sharing among the county"s 37 police departments and 17 school districts, as well as the County Attorney"s Office, Juvenile Court, Child Protection, Probation, the Juvenile Detention Center and the County Home School. The juvenile courtrooms would be rewired to provide judges, prosecutors and defense attorneys with immediate, user-friendly access to information about offenders. Schools, human service agencies and child protection workers could also have access to more information. Keeping children in school is a top priority for our county, as well as for our schools. Real-time access and monitoring of attendance records is a key to accomplishing this goal.

Any effort that aims to integrate information from the squad car to the Supreme Court will have its work cut out for it. Implementing these plans in Hennepin County and beyond will take much expertise and a serious financial commitment. Certainly no county can do it alone, and even the state could use some help. We welcome the interest and support of Minnesota HEALS and the Minnesota Business Partnership. These corporations know how to use the enormous information-sharing capabilities of computers to enhance productivity and strengthen accountability.

The challenge is neither simply collecting more data for the sake of it, nor buying fancy new technology to store the data. The real challenge is to make sure that more complete, timely information is actually being used by the criminal justice system for the important decisions that shape people"s lives and the safety of our communities.

If the information gaps had been closed two years ago, Ilka Mondane might very well be alive today.

- Amy Klobuchar is Hennepin County attorney.

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