Illustration by Thuan Pham

Crime and Punishment: A work in progress

What is the purpose of convicting a person of a crime against society? Vengeance? Restitution? Time out for the perpetrator to think about what harm was brought upon the victims, to comprehend what it means to lose the freedom to roam the earth as that person pleases? What guarantees do the people of a community have when the penal system releases that person into the population at large that more crimes aren’t forthcoming? What is just, and who dissects the seriousness of the offense, and the psychological makeup of the offender, to determine whether that individual serves the maximum punishment in a jurisdictional facility, or whether he or she winds up on parole?

Maybe, given the heinous nature of some crimes committed, a bigger question arises: What can we as concerned citizens do to engage, redirect, or rehabilitate those who, based on predictive data, are likely to violate laws in the future?

Those are several of the questions frequently facing Marc Bennett, Sedgwick County District Attorney, and he must daily make the decision to prosecute, divert, or dismiss those arrested and jailed, based on how it impacts the community, and how it improves the lives of those who break the law. Though fully understanding why people commit crimes isn’t an exact science, Bennett, in his 24th year in the District Attorney’s office, his ninth as DA, sees a few patterns of criminal behavior that are clear, and advocates for more community resources to ease the number and severity of crimes, which he deems critical to a safer Sedgwick County citizenry.

Sedgwick County District Attorney Marc Bennett

“I don’t want to speak as a criminal scientist, but four factors go beyond correlation, and present a rather strong suggestion of causation,” Bennett said, listing drug use, mental health issues, domestic violence, and the ubiquitous availability of guns as driving forces behind the crime rates in Sedgwick County, which tallies significantly more crimes across the board than the other 104 counties in the state.

Some notable statistics to consider from the Kansas Crime Index 2020: Kansas’ murder rate was 43% above the 10-year average in 2020, with 61 of the state’s 193 homicides committed in Sedgwick County, an increase of 48.5% from 2019. Bennett said that the Wichita Police Department worked 59 homicides in 2020 and cleared 45 of 59 for a 76.27% clearance rate. According to The Wall Street Journal, 10 of the U.S.’s largest police departments cleared 59% of homicides last year, though Covid-19 likely played a role in reduced investigative voracity. Johnson County’s 9 murders were the second highest number in Kansas. Property crimes comprise 84% of state totals, violent crimes the other 16%. Bennett believes the four factors play a defining role in both violent and property crimes.

“The pandemic has heightened the rise of methamphetamine use and domestic violence across the state,” Bennett said, “but these were issues for many years, and people are turning to drugs to deal with depression, unemployment, and being cooped up in their homes.”

As for domestic violence, Bennett has observed this pattern while researching a case, “As I read the details of a previous domestic violence incident, I’ll see the name of a current offender who was listed as a child in the prior case, who then turns to violence as an adult.” Bennett said that anger explodes in an offender for various reasons, including money issues, unemployment, sex, and drug or alcohol use. “These are triggers for people who are otherwise simply at home with the people they love, and then violence erupts.”

Bennett said that he’s not making a political statement, but is concerned about the rise in volume of firearms in Sedgwick County. “The ubiquitous nature of firearms has become a major concern for law enforcement. Over the past twelve years, we’ve seen the number of guns on the street double.” Bennett said that his office, and the Wichita Police Department, have emphasized the need for gun owners to secure their weapons. “We have seen so many guns stolen from vehicles, and they often wind up linked to criminal activities.”

With all of that to battle, what can be done to ease the pain and suffering produced by criminal activity? How do we reduce recidivism, given that a small percentage of people commit a majority of the crimes? Bennett promotes solutions to crime as a member of the board of directors of the Exploited and Missing Child Unit (EMCU); the Mental Health and Substance Abuse Coalition; the Wichita Area Sexual Assault Center (WASAC); and the National District Attorneys Association. He is a former president of the Kansas County and District Attorneys Association and was named Kansas Prosecutor of the Year by that organization in 2018. He is a former board member of the Sedgwick County Child Advocacy Center. He is an appointee to the Kansas Prosecutor’s Grievance and Ethics Committee. In addition to these biographical accomplishments, Bennett composed a letter to Kansas state legislators in 2019, requesting criminal justice reform. In the letter, Bennett points out the “revolving door” incarceration issues the state faces as parolees violate the terms of their court order, then serve more time, only to be released and commit more crimes. Many of the recidivists are caught with drugs, or can’t control negative behaviors due to mental illness. Bennett wrote:

“In Sedgwick County, COMCARE (the Sedgwick County licensed community mental health center) anticipated saving $4 million after it opened its expanded Community Crisis Center in 2015 to provide additional services not previously provided, including sobering beds and a 23 hour crisis intervention unit.38 The program served 5,799 people in 2018 at an annual cost of approximately $1.3 million in state funds. The Wichita State University Hugo Wall School of Public Affairs has assessed the program each year since the Center’s opening and found savings to the community of more than $8.1 million annually through 201739 with estimated savings from 2018 approaching $12 million.”

Since the average cost for one year of incarceration for one prisoner equaled around $24,500 in 2019, Bennett argued that drug and mental health treatment might end up saving the state, and Sedgwick County, large amounts of money while providing those on the wrong side of the law the opportunity to improve their quality of life outside of prison cells.

“If we can focus on the 500-600 people most at risk in this county, then that will provide tremendous positive impact on our community,” Bennett said. “We need more beds for our mental health facilities, we need more people working at COMCARE, they’re down 200 people right now. Where do you turn to to get help for your kid when they’re in crisis?”