ALTUS – Criminal defendants in Oklahoma assume the most responsibility for carrying the justice system’s financial burden, a Jackson County district judge said.
“They’re the least able to pay,” said District Judge Brad Leverett, who has been on the bench since his appointment as a special judge in 2007. “The criminal defendant now leaves the courtroom owing between $20,000 and $30,000 and the majority never will pay it.
“Excessive fines, court costs, prosecution fees and supervision fees mount up. The court costs are so exorbitant. You might as well hang a millstone around their (defendants) neck.”
The judge is also mindful of jail fees, which cost the defendant up to $30 per day, he said.
After a convict is released from prison, they have six months to report back to the court for a Rule 8 hearing and establish financial arrangements to pay all the court costs and fees. However, those arrangements are not always met, and the former inmates often find themselves back in jail for failure to pay.
Specific numbers of people or amounts owed to the court are not readily available, but the number of people who return to face the judge for failure to appear for the six-month review is troubling.
Leverett admitted it can be difficult for some felons to obtain a job that will support them, their family and pay court costs.
“We take into account their economic standing when they come before us for failure to pay,” he said. “We try not to jail someone who is indigent and they’re before us solely on failure to pay.”
Jackson County judges do not assess more fees when defendants appear for nonpayment, but in the event they are jailed the inmates can receive up to $25 credit for each day they’re incarcerated.
‘Coming and going’
But that’s not the only justice system issue that concerns Leverett.
In many criminal cases, a defendant might be back in front of the judge before the six-month Rule 8 hearing is held. It won’t necessarily be about finances, rather another criminal proceeding that involves a new allegation.
“After the defendant leaves district court, it’s in the hands of the Department of Corrections,” he said. “So, if I hand down a five-year sentence, that defendant might be leaving prison in six months. Someone within the DOC determines when they (inmates) leave, and they (DOC officials) have no accountability to the public. The inmates are coming and going so fast I don’t know how they (DOC) have time to count them. It seems what we do at the district court level doesn’t matter.”
Although many people in Oklahoma and nationwide believe the judiciary has numerous flaws, Leverett is confident the system is efficient and strikes a balance between fairness and grace.
“I believe we reach fair results most of the time,” he said. “Juries get it right most of the time and I think they want to get it right. They work hard to get a just result. I sense a real desire on their part to pay attention and listen to both sides. I think they want to hear the whole story before they decide.”
Nationally, the jury system was put on full display the last three weeks as Minnesota prosecutors sought to convict Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin in connection with the death of George Floyd. The 12-person jury found the former police officer guilty on three felony charges.
Yes, Your Honor
Leverett doesn’t foresee himself leaving the Oklahoma judiciary any time soon, but he doesn’t want to wear out his welcome, either.
“I don’t want to stay too long, but as long as I’m making a difference in people’s lives, I’ll stay,” he said. “I’m contributing to the welfare and common good of the community and I enjoy it.”
But there are those occasions when the judge finds himself privately questioning a lawyer’s strategy.
“Sometimes I catch myself wondering in my mind why lawyers didn’t ask a different question or why an argument wasn’t rebuffed,” he said, with a smile. “For now, I’m enjoying today and looking forward to tomorrow.”
Leverett fell into the practice of law by accident after thinking he wanted to teach public school and coach. After a semester of student-teaching in 1981 at Stillwater High School, Leverett knew public education wasn’t for him.
He subsequently took the law school entrance exam, scored high, and then applied to the University of Oklahoma Law School. He spent 13 years as a prosecutor and later joined with some partners to form their own private practice in southwest Oklahoma.
Leverett was appointed as a special judge in Jackson County in 2007 and was elected as a district judge in 2018.
“I’m enjoying it,” he said of his job. “There’s a lot of administrative duties beside the courtroom work in the five counties.”
Leverett will preside over 30 criminal trials in the five-county judicial district from now through August, he said. Those counties are Greer, Harmon, Jackson, Tillman and Kiowa.
However, Leverett isn’t the only family member connected to the legal profession. His wife Robin serves as a court reporter in Altus, and his son Travis is an assistant U.S. Attorney in the Western District of Oklahoma. His daughter Holly is a cardiac care ICU nurse in Oklahoma City.