JUDGE SENT TO EASE CASE BACKLOG

Will Help With Criminal Cases In 23rd Circuit

A special judge has been assigned to help handle criminal cases in an
Eastern Kentucky circuit where there has been a significant backlog
and some people have criticized the regular judge for his sentences in
drug crimes.

Kentucky Supreme Court Chief Justice Joseph E. Lambert filed an order
Monday appointing Judge William J. Wehr of Campbell County to hear
criminal cases in Lee and Owsley counties. The counties are part of
the 23rd Judicial Circuit, where Judge William W. Trude Jr. presides.

There has been a significant increase in felony cases in the two
counties since the first of the year. Lambert appointed Wehr in
recognition of the increase and the need to process cases promptly,
the order said.

The order cited only the caseload issue, but Lambert's decision will
please some people who have not been happy with Trude's decisions to
reduce sentences outlined in plea bargains, or to grant early releases
in some drug cases.

In at least 19 cases from one 2001 drug roundup, for example, Trude
sentenced people to less time than they bargained for when pleading
guilty.

Those decisions were within the judge's discretion, but frustrated
some people who favored stiff penalties in hopes of deterring drug
trafficking.

"Judging from everything I've heard in the community, I think this
will be welcome news," H.B. Elkins, head of the anti-drug PEP
Coalition in Beattyville and Lee County, said of Wehr's
appointment.

Trude could not be reached for comment yesterday.

In an interview last year with The Beattyville Enterprise, Trude said
many people convicted of selling only a few prescription pills are
drug users trying to support their habit. It's better to put them on
probation because they can be required to work and get help for
substance-abuse problems, he said.

A new federally funded agency that targets street-level drug sales has
played a role in the increasing caseload and as a result in Wehr's
assignment.

Officers with Operation UNITE have investigated more than 100 cases in
Lee and Owsley counties since January, said Karen Engle, executive
director of the program. UNITE recently took part with state and local
police in what was thought to be the largest drug roundup ever in
Owsley County, charging three-dozen suspects.

The influx of new cases came on top of a backlog of existing cases.

Herald-Leader analysis of information from the state court system
showed that between 1996 and 2002, it took an average of more than 21
months to resolve cases in Lee County. That was the second-longest
average in the state.

UNITE is focusing on Lee and Owsley counties for extra drug
investigations, in part because police there are stretched thin, Engle
said.

Engle said she was glad Lambert had assigned a special judge to
preside over criminal cases in the two counties. "Obviously, the
numbers prove it's needed," she said. "If UNITE had an effect on that,
I'm thrilled."

Earlier, UNITE officials had expressed concern about how their cases
would be handled in the counties, Elkins said.

Estill County also is in the 23rd Circuit, but was not mentioned in
Lambert's order. The county is not part of the UNITE program because
it is not in the 5th congressional district, represented by Hal
Rogers, R-Somerset.

Rogers started UNITE, which stands for Unlawful Narcotics
Investigation, Treatment and Education, last year to bring more
resources into the fight against drugs in Eastern and Southern Kentucky.

James L. Deckard, chief of staff for Lambert, said the Administrative
Office of the Courts had not seen a sizeable increase in the criminal
case load in Estill County.

Wehr could start work soon in Lee and Owsley counties.

Lambert's order said Wehr will have discretion to review all criminal
cases filed in the counties since the first of the year and decide
which ones will be assigned to him. The order would make it possible
for him to take all those cases.

Deckard said Wehr was an assistant county attorney from 1978 to 1988
and circuit judge from 1988 until March, when he took senior status.
Senior status is essentially a program of semi-retirement in which
judges agree to work for 120 days on duties such as relieving regular
judges or helping reduce backlogs, and in return get a retirement increase.

The judicial caseload is not uniform around the state and it's not
unusual to send in a senior judge to help, Deckard said.