A district judge Tuesday delivered a forceful response to criticism of the justice system by city officials, calling it “childish” and a “total copout.”
It was an extraordinary statement, considering that judges rarely make public comments about policy. Mobile County District Judge Sprio Cheriogotis delivered the rebuke of Mayor Sandy Stimpson and Police Chief Paul Prine in his courtroom before starting the daily ritual of moving through dozens of criminal cases that fill each docket.
The city cannot adequately address violence until the courts close a massive backlog made worse by a slowdown forced by COVID-19 restrictions, the mayor and police chief said. The judge said Mobile County courts handle more criminal cases per judge than any other judicial circuit in the state. He said the county needs at least three more judges, and perhaps as many as five.
“Mayor Stimpson promised the safest city in America, and in delivering that promise he has failed,” he said. “But I don’t blame him because crime is not his fault. He didn’t shoot anyone. I don’t blame Chief Prine for not stopping the shooting at the vigil even though he was there. Crime is the product of our current American society.”“Being a mayor or a police chief or a judge, these are very difficult jobs.
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